Airesiwe's Tale
by xxSPOTxx
Summary: A made up character in the famous J.R.R. Tolkien story Lord of the Rings and her part to play in it.
1. Chapter 1

The sunshine came through the window like water on rock. Still rays awoke Airesiwe as she blinked, awakening from a dream. She had the dream before, it was one of her past. One that she tried not to remember in hope that it may never really be solved. She brushed the thought away and staggered out on the balcony. She smelled the fresh air and the waterfall nearby made it fresher. She had a feeling something important would happen today, though she did not know what. She closed her eyes in hope for a flashback, but it was but a failed attempt. When she opened her eyes, he sister Arwen was standing beside her.  
  
"Finally, you awake from your ever-long beauty sleep," Arwen said with a grin on her face. "Any usefulplans for today?"  
  
"I'm planning on taking Firnephel for a ride, today's a special day to take one. Besides, something has been stirring in my mind, something I can't quite explain. But I know it's important." Airesiwe trailed out of her own thoughts for a moment. "I wish to go alone though, if you don't mind."  
  
Arwen's eyes widened, then narrowed back down to normal size. "You know, you shouldn't be alone, especially in these woods, something evil is coming."  
  
"So, you've had the same thought?"  
  
"No, more like a premonition." Arwen smiled sheepishly. "Besides, you're much to young."  
  
Airesiwe did not grin back. When Airesiwe was born, she was blessed by someone quite powerful, the one thing that many wished for, eternal youth. Airesiwe had been alive for 2,000 years, but still had the appearance of a teenager. She would never grow old, unless she took up her immortality or used up all of her power and became mortal.  
  
"I have more experience in fighting than you will ever have in a lifetime." Airesiwe joked. Although little did she know that it was actually true. Airesiwe was the best warrior in Rivendell. She had been trained intensively at a very young age. "Now if you don't mind, I shall be going now."  
  
"Very well then, but if something happens, hang in there and I'll come by."  
  
"How will you know if I'm in trouble?" Airesiwe had mind powers, but rarely ever used them. She had ten given to her at birth, but had used no more than seven as a child. She now had only three left.  
  
"I know these things, Airesiwe." That sheepish look came across Arwen's face, "Premonitions never lie."  
  
Airesiwe walked to the field in which her horse was kept. Firnephel was Airesiwe's horse ever since she was a child. She, as a child, foolishly casted a magical blessing on the horse to make it have eternal life. He was the oldest of horses there, but like Airesiwe, showed no signs of age.  
  
"Firnephel, oh boy." Airesiwe started to feel tense, but not because of her horse. "I've always wanted to go on an adventure, how 'bout you?"  
  
Suddenly, her horse reared up on his hind legs and stayed in the air for at least a couple seconds before coming down. He snorted, kicked, then finally lay still as if nothing had happened.  
  
"What is it boy, what did you hea-.." That is when she heard it. A loud screeching noise came from inside  
  
the woods. It pierced her ears and caused her to keel over in pain. She got up panicked. "What is that!!??"  
  
The noise stopped, but Firnephel still felt tense and cowered behind a nearby tree. Airesiwe showed no fear  
  
though, and untied him and jumped on his back without even checking the saddle. Usually she rode bareback, but she figured she'd be riding him for awhile.  
  
"Good boy, steady," Airesiwe whispered as they both promenaded silently into the dark woods. 


	2. Chapter 2

Although it was morning, the woods still looked dark and mysterious. She had heard stories about the woods and never really paid any mind to them, until now. She realized the extreme danger she was in, especially in woods like these. The same screeching noise that she heard earlier replayed over and over in her head. She didn't really know where she was going, and didn't really want to know. For these woods were hundreds of miles wide and long, and unless you paid mind to your surroundings, there was a great chance that you wouldn't come out. To make sure that she knew where she was going, she cut notches on the trees in the shape of an "A". She followed what seemed like an imaginary trail for an hour before stopping to rest at the ford. This ford was shallow, and very easy to cross. It was quite big though, most unusual for a ford. It was about 20 feet wide, and a mile long. Firnephel at this time had become calm and no longer had memory of the screeching noise. Airesiwe tightened the saddle on his back and let him roam for awhile. She laid on the side of a tree and dreamed of pleasant things. Eventually, she lost sight of Firnephel, but it didn't matter. She was already half asleep.  
  
She awoke with a jolt to the same screeching sound she had heard earlier. It was louder, which meant that it was very close by. She screamed in pain and tried not to think of the noise, but at that time it hit her. Where was Firnephel? "Firnephel??!!" Airesiwe cried. She whistled but the sound of screeching overcame her. She fell in pain and hit her head on a nearby rock and quickly fell unconscious.  
  
She finally came to no more than an hour after falling, but there was still no sign of Firnephel. The screeching had ceased, but now she had a large bump on her head. Below her was a pool of blood that came from her forehead. Dazed, she looked around. The trees became a black blur. It was then she realized it was already dark. She wandered around for awhile looking for her horse, then gave up and decided to cross the river. She would not leave the woods until she found him.  
She wandered deep into the woods for a very long time. Even though it was only a couple of hours, to Airesiwe, it felt like days. Finally, she came upon hoofprints in the dirt. She followed them and finally came across a field, and in the middle was a dark heap. "No!" Airesiwe screamed as she ran towards it. It was Firnephel, but not the same on she saw when she left. This Firnephel was torn up with blood still spilling out of it. His eyes were still open with fear, and cuts and scratches covered him. "No Firnephel, no.no you can't leave me.not now, NOT EVER!" Airesiwe managed to say through tears. But then the last word pounded through her. NOT EVER! She looked at her horse and remembered her mind powers and the three she had left. 'It will be worth it', Airesiwe thought to herself. Slowly she stained her brain to think of an elvish sentence that would cure him. Finally, she remembered. Nimo leyaz purée elidad, Nimo leyaz kilo sumoria." She barely finished when she noticed Firnephel's chest moving up and down, his scratches healed and cuts disappeared. His eyes were full of life again as they looked at Airesiwe with an unbearable love. Airesiwe hugged her horse and was glad that she used her power to save him. Once he was up, she took off his torn saddle and left it in the field. She got up on his back and they continued walking.  
It was still quite dark out, around 2AM. Airesiwe had been walking around for longer than she suspected. They should have gotten out by now. She had a feeling she was going in circles though because they appeared at the large field more than once. She rode to the center of the field and looked around. The moonlight shown brightly which made the grass appear gold. She looked around, decided which way to go when she heard the loudest screeching noise that night. Her horse reared up on his hind legs, which caused Airesiwe to fall off. Firnephel came back in contact with the ground and took off running for his life. "No don't leave!" Airesiwe shouted and ran to follow him. She ran and ran and was tired the whole time but kept running for the sake of her horse. "I'm not going to leave him, not after I just saved him!" She ran for what seemed like an eternity. She could feel sweat gathering in her mouth but kept on running. Firnephel was gathering speed and it was getting harder to catch up to him. The woods were so dark and Airesiwe couldn't see. Finally, Firnephel came to a dead stop. Airesiwe was barely in sight but finally came up to him panting and dizzy, but when she finally reached him, she stared in shock. There was something in the woods that she did not expect. 


	3. Chapter 3

At first she couldn't quite tell what it was, then the moonlight shone through the thick, dark, gloomy tree and it was clear. There was a man in Rivendell. Maybe even worse. She squinted her eyes are tried desperately to see it better, but it was much too dark. It seemed to look like a ranger, which is what Airesiwe feared. Firnephel seemed to feel the same fear and he hid behind a nearby tree. Airesiwe grabbed the bridle and led him a little ways, then stopped. Was this what was making the terrible noise? She dropped the bridle and took out her bow, then reached back for the arrows. Her hand griped around for some but she couldn't find any. She panicked. If this was really what was making the noise she would have to kill it, and how could she kill it if she had no arrows? She took off her arrow sack and saw that it was empty. 'They must have fallen out while I was delirious,' she thought. She looked around her surroundings hoping for a miracle, but was disappointed at her success. Defeated, she went to Firnephel and was going to lead him back home when she came across a white piece of paper sowed into the bridle, along with it was one perfectly sharp arrow. Airesiwe quickly grabbed the arrow and the piece of paper fell to the ground. Shepicked it up and read it:  
  
Premonition's never lie.  
  
Airesiwe smiled and turned to where she saw the man, but he had already left. She looked around and soon found him again, but this time he was on his knees and seemed to be looking for something. Slowly, she walked stealthily towards him bow and arrow ready to fire, but kept downward so that he wouldn't see it. She was getting closer and closer and was sneaking up behind him, when finally she was right behind him and he didn't seem to notice. She pulled out her arrow and aimed it at his head.  
  
"What's this? A ranger in the mists of Rivendell? Airesiwe said.  
  
Slowly, the man turned around and revealed his face, then slowly got up and started walking as if he didn't even see her. Enraged at his response, Airesiwe pulled back her arrow into a tight grip and was about to shoot him when he stopped.  
  
"I would answer," Airesiwe snapped, "For I could easily mistaken you for an orc spy." There was a long silence, but finally the man spoke.  
  
"I am Aargorn, son of Arathorn, and I am here to cure a wounded hobbit".  
  
All was silent as Airesiwe thought. A hobbit, way out here? He must be lying, I shall see for myself. She lowered her bow and started walking through the woods, not really sure where she was going.  
  
"I would rather you not take that road," Aargorn uttered, "For I too, could mistaken you for an orc spy." There was a glint in his eye that resembled the look on Arwen's face.  
  
Airesiwe stopped, and turned around slightly to show that she was not intimidated. She walked towards him and suddenly realized how tall he really was.  
  
"I am Airesiwe." Airesiwe said. Aragorn nodded his head as if hoping she would continue, though she really had nothing else to say. "Airesiwe Greenleaf."  
  
Airesiwe didn't really know who she was. She was found in the middle of the woods in a woven elven basket, with a note attached to her that said. Airesiwe is my name, take care of me as you will. Unknown to any of her past, she was assumed to be Legolas Greenleaf's sister. She took on the name of Greenleaf, although she knew that it wasn't her name.  
  
She looked at Aragorn with a look of disbelief on his face, then he turned to leave.  
  
"Wait!" she shouted, "The hobbit.is, well I'm from Rivendell, Elrond can help him, he has healing powers." Aragorn turned to face her once more. "And how do you suppose you can get him there?"  
  
Right at that moment Firnephel appeared. Airesiwe almost forgot about him. "I am the fastest rider of my kind, I will take him there if you don't mind." Airesiwe wasn't really thinking, so many things had happened that night and she wasn't in the best condition. "Please, I can help."  
  
Aragorn looked at her, sighed, then turned once more down the path. Airesiwe, at that moment, jumped on Firnephel and ran down on the road passing Aragorn.  
  
"Hey! Come back!" He yelled, but Airesiwe could barely hear him, for she was already 20 paces ahead.  
  
They ran on the path and finally lost sight of Aragorn but no sooner confronted a new stranger.  
  
"AAH!" the small hobbit screamed. "Ringwraiths!"  
  
He cowered down and sobbed as if expecting to die that very instant. Airesiwe stopped her horse and quickly unmounted.  
  
"It's ok little boy, I won't hurt you." Airesiwe whispered as she kneeled besides him. The hobbit seemed very offended by this and quickly spoke up.  
  
"I AM NOT A BOY.," the hobbit sniffed, "but just a regular o'l halfling." Airesiwe was quite confused.  
  
"A halfling?"  
  
"Shire-folk, hobbit." The hobbit's fear returned to his eyes. "You won't hurt me will you?"  
  
"Of course not of cour-." HOBBIT! Airesiwe thought. "Your a hobbit! Your the wounded hobbit are you not?"  
  
Pain and sadness came to his eyes.  
  
"I'm not, but my friend, Mr. Frodo, he has been badly wounded by Ringwraiths." the hobbit looked as if he were to cry. "I believe he's going to die any minute."  
  
"Ringwraiths? Frodo?" Airesiwe was quite confused at this new information. "Tell me, where is your friend?"  
  
"He shouldn't be far, just keep following the path. You should reach him soon." The hobbit sniffled. "My name is Samwise Gamgee by the way."  
  
Airesiwe barely heard him, for she was already looking down the dark path.  
  
"Airesiwe is mine, but I must make haste if I am to reach him."  
  
Just then there was a sword at her throat. She quivered, and stared at the hobbit whose face was white.  
  
"DON'T KILL HER PLEASE!" He managed to spit out. Airesiwe quickly grabbed the sword, cutting her hand, and brought herself up to face Aragorn and drew her arrow and bow. Both of them had a weapon and was only a couple feet away from each other. Sam's face cringed at the sight and was quite confused on who was really helping him.  
  
"I knew it," Aragorn said, "So you are a spy."  
  
Airesiwe's eyes were wide with hate for the new stranger.  
  
"I'm taking the hobbit to my home." Airesiwe said coldly. "It is either you trust me, or your friend dies."  
  
All was silent, then Sam spoke.  
  
"Please, just let her take him." Sam wasn't sure if it was the right thing though, give up his friend to a stranger, but he could tell she was serious. "Frodo must live, he must." Sam was close to tears.  
  
Aragorn stared at Sam, then came back to Airesiwe.  
  
"There are Ringwraiths out there."  
  
"I can handle them," Airesiwe said. She knew that they couldn't be worse than the screeching she heard earlier. "I do not fear them."  
  
Aargorn stared for a very long time at Airesiwe, then finally spoke.  
  
"We'll meet you there." 


	4. Chapter 4

Aragorn, Airesiwe, and Sam walked quickly to where Frodo was. Airesiwe pulled Firnephel by the bridle and was quite tempted just to jump up on his back and ride him, but she could tell something was wrong with him. He was more spooked then she'd ever seen him before. She was quite shooken up too, hearing the screeching noises that pierced her ears. Finally, they reached the spot where Frodo was.  
  
Airesiwe took one look at him and winced. The young hobbit had a strange glow in his eyes that wouldn't go away. He was gasping for air and looked at the sky as if searching for something. Two other hobbits were next to him crying and telling him not to give up. Airesiwe walked over to the hobbit and kneeled down beside him.  
  
"Who is she?" She heard one of the hobbits ask.  
  
"She's good, she's going to take care of him, don't worry." Airesiwe wasn't really listening to the constant questioning of the hobbits, but rather watched Frodo with intense eyes. Right then she began to feel nervous. Would she be able to save him? She knew that all she would have to do was get him to Elrond, but she had a strange feeling it wouldn't be easy.  
  
Aragorn picked up Frodo and placed him on Firnephel. He patted the horse on the neck then looked towards Airesiwe. "Eli Nala Isbis Sundron, (Are you sure you can do this?)," Aragorn asked. "Tabathe Hanoi ispertar, Sundron belida (Like I said, I do not fear them)." Airesiwe had no clue what it was she was speaking of.  
  
"Ride fast, we're counting on you stranger." A blue flicker alit Aragorn's eyes. "Don't look back, no matter what fear comes upon you."  
  
"I am the fastest rider. Upon full speed, nothing can stop me." With that, she jumped up on Firnephel, and led him in the direction she came from. It was as if something was drawing her to Rivendell, preventing her from getting lost. "Nozoca opelli (No fear)," and with that, she was off.  
  
She bolted through the dark woods, but luckily the pale light of dawn managed to sneak it's way through the trees, making it a little easier to see. She rode with great speed, occasionally looking at Frodo as he squeaked and gasped for more air. She rode slower, fearing that Firnephel would get tired, when it happened. The screeching was heard from within the thick woods. Firnephel sensed the danger and rode faster looking in all directions, almost tripping on nearby logs. "Faster," Airesiwe whispered, as she too, looking around in panic. Then she saw it. A black shadow was moving in the forest at around the same speed she was. She looking in the other direction and saw another one, except it was much easier to see. It seemed to be a man clothed in black, though she could not see his face. It was riding a black horse with red eyes and dressed in pounds of armor. She leaned forward hoping to outrun the two shadows, when she did the worst thing that she could possible do: she looked back. She saw three more shadows that were almost at her tail, screamed, and fell off. Her dagger that she kept with her managed to brush up against one of the horses, causing it to fall in pain. She got up and looked around scared. Firnephel ran off with Frodo still on his back, while the other four that were following it turned around and tried to surround Airesiwe. She took out her short sword and made a deep cut in one of the horses legs. The rider screeched in pain and fell with the horse to the ground. Airesiwe ran with incredible speed in the direction of Firnephel, only to be confronted with two more shadows. She shot one of the horses with the one arrow she had, but it didn't fall, but rather reared up and caused the rider to fall off. She quickly jumped on the horse and steered in towards the field where Frodo and her horse was. The horse, too blinded by the pain, obeyed Airesiwe with huge bitterness. Airesiwe took the arrow out of his side, but that did not ease the hatred for the new stranger. She rode quickly to the field without looking back, though she did not hear the screeching behind her. There in the middle of the field she spotted Firnephel, with Frodo still on his back, gasping for breathe. Airesiwe jumped off the horse and ran towards Firnephel. The black horse turned around and galloped back into the woods, where more screeching could be heard.  
  
"Come on! We cannot dawdle here!" Airesiwe shouted. Frodo was still in good shape, for his condition. His eyes were still round and hexed, but his gasping was still going on, which was a good sign. She jumped on Firnephel's back and rode across the field. Just at that time, four shadows came out from in front of her. She turned to the side but three more ran towards her. She took a sharp left, taking the strangers by surprise, and dashed into the other side of the woods. The black figures screamed in horror, and ran after her. Firnephel ran as fast as he could, but was still becoming slower.  
  
"No fear Firnephel," Airesiwe reminded him. "Nozoca opelli."  
  
She rode with confidence, although the strangers were close behind. They were gathering speed, especially one of the seven. It was right beside Airesiwe, on the right, and although she told Firnephel to go faster, he only went slower. Airesiwe took the one, bloody arrow she shot at the horse, and shot it at the shadow. It did nothing. She screamed in fear, and without thinking pulled Firnephel's mane sharply to the right. Her horse ran into the black one without warning, and cause the black horse to fall over. She took off in the woods without a trail or anything to follow. The black shadows followed her, but were at this time, much farther behind. She saw in the distance the blue ford she had encountered the night before. She ran towards it and ran through the shallow water. She was in Rivendell. She looked back at the six on the other side of the river and laughed.  
  
"It is over," she said.  
  
The strangers took out their swords and their horses grunted as if laughing at her remark. Airesiwe also drew her small sword and glared at them. Firnephel seemed to know the situation and reared up on his hind legs and neighed. The shadows took the invitation and made their way slowly across the ford. With the second last power, Airesiwe chanted an amulet and waited. The strangers stepped closer and closer, when finally something happened. The water level seemed to rise, and the dam not far away snapped. The incredible waves washed the strangers and their horses away, leaving Airesiwe, Frodo, and Firnephel alone on the shore. She looked down at Frodo with pride, when she noticed that he wasn't moving. She turned his head towards hers and saw that his eyes were as hard as stone. She gasped and felt his wrist for a pulse, only to find that it was dead. He was dead. She wept and hugged the small hobbit close to her. 'No,' she thought. "All this way." She decided that there was only one thing left to do: Use her last, and final power that she was blessed with. She set him on the ground and waited, as if hoping that he would come back to life miraculously, but he didn't. Instead he gazed at her with dead, cold eyes. Slowly, as if wondering if it was the right thing to do, she chanted her last phrase and waited. Nothing. She had wasted her last power for nothing. Defeated, she mounted Frodo on the back on Firnephel, mounted herself on his back, and rode slowly towards Rivendell with great sadness. 


	5. Chapter 5

She entered Rivendell with great sadness, walking slowly on Firnephel. 'We tried our best' she kept telling  
  
herself, but she knew that she must have done something wrong. Elrond and Arwen, along with some other  
  
elves were already at the entrance waiting for her, and when she came in, Elrond took Frodo off carefully  
  
and carried him to a nearby room. Airesiwe walked Firnephel back to the field of horses and talked to him  
  
for awhile.  
  
"You did a good job, you know that?" Airesiwe said. "If it wasn't for you I wouldn't even be alive." Tears  
  
welled up in Airesiwe's eyes. "So many things have happened, so many things.." Airesiwe dozed of by a  
  
nearby tree, and seemed to hear shouting in the distance.  
  
Airesiwe awoke to a wet cloth on her head. She was in her room and golden sunlight poured in.  
  
"Finally, you awake from your ever-long beauty sleep," a voice said. She turned around and saw Arwen  
  
standing by her holding a wet cloth to her head.  
  
"What happened? What time is it?" Airesiwe was quite confused at all that was happening.  
  
"You passed out by the field of horses."  
  
"Passed out? I thought I fell asleep."  
  
"Asleep? Hm.I doubt that. You usually don't sleep that long. It's been a whole day. You have a pretty big  
  
bump on your head, it was bleeding a bit when I found you." Arwen said. "How did you get that bump?"  
  
"I'm.I guess I just fell, yes I fell in the woods. Is it really that bad?" Airesiwe touched her forehead, only  
  
to feel a sticky substance in the process.  
  
"It's getting better," Arwen smiled. "I thought you were shot when I found you."  
  
"Is that what the screaming was?"  
  
"Screaming? Well, I wasn't that scared. Why? Did you hear screaming."  
  
"Yes.but I guess it was nothing."  
  
"Oh yes, by the way, the hobbit, you know the one you rescued? He's doing just fine now. It was as if some  
  
magical power helped heal him, and I don't think it was one of Elrond's."  
  
Airesiwe smiled. 'So my last power wasn't such a waste after all.' "Do you mind if I see him? I just want to  
  
make sure he's ok."  
  
Arwen had a look of shock on her face. "Funny, that's just what he said about you."  
  
Airesiwe walked over to the guest room, a decent spot in Rivendell. The window faced the city of  
  
Rivendell, and near it was a fountain. Birds chirped as sunlight poured into the room. She walked in.  
  
Frodo was lying on his back staring at the ceiling smiling, and an old wizard was sitting in a nearby chair.  
  
Turning to leave, Airesiwe walked out, but was stopped suddenly by the wizard.  
  
"Oh, don't mind me Airesiwe, come in," the wizard's blue eyes shone. "My name is Gandalf, and you must  
  
know Frodo," he smiled once more.  
  
"Yes, I do. I just wanted to drop in and see how he was doing. Has he healed completely?" Airesiwe said in  
  
wonder.  
  
"Thanks to a mysterious power and the medicine of Elrond, he is on the brink to a full recovery."  
  
All the time Frodo was staring at Airesiwe with a shy look on his face. She could hear Gandalf, but  
  
everything seemed to become a blur.  
  
"You know Airesiwe, why we had to bring him to Rivendell, do you not?" Gandalf asked.  
  
"Hmmm hmm." Airesiwe wasn't really listening, nor thinking.  
  
"Good, because you have been invited to the council of Elrond tomorrow morning." Gandalf smiled. "There  
  
are some matters that we must discuss."  
  
That night Airesiwe couldn't stop thinking about Frodo. Who was he? And why was he so special? She  
  
pondered for awhile then decided to go to Frodo's room. She had a special sword that an old friend gave to  
  
Arwen, then passed on to her. It was a sword, but not just any sword. The same short sword that she had  
  
used to fight the shadows. It glowed a bright blue when orcs were close, therefore making it very useful.  
  
Airesiwe, however, rarely used it. The only time she had was when she met up with the strangers in the  
  
dark. Otherwise she had encountered no evil in the wood's of Rivendell, or Rivendell itself.  
  
She carried the sword to Frodo's room and looked inside. The moonlight shone through the window, as if  
  
replacing the sun's light. She crept over to his bed, as not to disturb him. He was sitting on the edge of his  
  
bed looking out the window, his back turned against her. She quietly sat down next to him and he jumped.  
  
"WHO-..oh my, I'm sorry Airesiwe, I, I guess I didn't see you." He looked quite shooken up.  
  
"That's fine, I get spooked all the time too." Airesiwe handed the sword to Frodo. "Maybe this will ease the  
  
fear."  
  
Frodo stared at the sword for a long time, then finally stood up and pulled the sword out. It shone silver and  
  
rays of moonlight bounced off and lit up the room. Airesiwe smiled, proud of her action, when she saw  
  
something in the distance. At first it was hard to tell what it was. She thought it was a star. She stood up and  
  
walked towards the window and stared at the "star". The red glow came closer and closer until it was clear  
  
what it was. An orange eye glared at Airesiwe as black speech echoed around her. She shivered then  
  
screamed and fell to the floor. She closed her eyes and panted.  
  
"Airesiwe?" Faint voices could be heard, but she no longer recognized them. She got up, opened her eyes  
  
and saw Frodo watching her with intense eyes.  
  
"Are you ok?" Airesiwe felt faint, and staggered out the door. The moonlight scared her, and she was afraid  
  
to close her eyes once more. Her stagger turned into a run towards her room, her bed. She flopped on it and  
  
sobbed. Fearing on what would happen the next day. 


	6. Chapter 6

Airesiwe awoke shivering and cold. At first she forgot where she was and had little memory of what happened last night. Finally, she realize that she was in her own room, though it did not seem like it. Darkness crept into Rivendell, and the cheer and sunshine that it once had, was lost. The waterfalls were gray and the birds lost their song. In fact, it seemed to Airesiwe that there were no birds, not even people. She walked out of her room and searched for someone, anyone. But no one responded. The lights were out, the rooms were empty, and for the first time in a long time, Airesiwe was alone.  
  
Alone.  
  
She walked on for awhile, with a little hope left in her that someone was around to explain this mess. Leaves blew round her feet, and the wind whistled a song of sorrow. Finally, she found someone. But it was not what she expected. This stranger was similar to the one she fought on the way to Rivendell with Frodo. Except this time, there was no black horse to accompany it. The shadow turned around, faceless, and pointed in the direction of the fountain. Not knowing what else to do, Airesiwe crept towards the gray fountain. She looked into it, and saw her reflection, though it did not look the same. She looked downhearted, as tears streamed down her face. She had many arrows in a small pouch, along with several daggers and swords hanging from her belt. Just then, in the reflection, a small, dark-hair hobbit appeared by her side.  
  
"Airesiwe," the hobbit said, "Who are you, really?" The rest of the speech became a blur, along with the image itself. Airesiwe turned around and saw the faceless shadow behind her. It quickly drew a sword, and before Airesiwe could defend herself the creature swung the sword and it thrashed against her throat.  
  
Airesiwe choked, blood spilling from her neck. Her sight of the creature lifted as she fell back into the pool. Darkness took Airesiwe's mind as she desperately tried to gasp for breath. A watery haze came to Airesiwe. All she could think about was 'Air, I need more air.' But only water mixed with blood came to Airesiwe's mouth. Seeing it was no use, she slowly exhaled the remaining air in her. She closed her eyes and dreamed of a better place. Her heartbeat slowed, then came to a stop. And she heard and saw no more.  
  
"Airesiwe? I...think...coming...come." Someone in the distance said.  
  
"Uhh...wa?" Airesiwe opened her eyes and saw Arwen, Elrond, Frodo, Gandalf, and many other elves surrounding her. "Where am I," Airesiwe said softly.  
  
"Oh thank goodness!" Arwen shouted. "We thought you were dead."  
  
"I heard a splash, and came running as soon as I could," an elf said, "You must have fallen into the fountain."  
  
"Fallen?" Airesiwe searched for the cut on her neck, but all she found was bare skin. "Are you sure?"  
  
"I wouldn't deny it."  
  
"You must have sleep-walked," Arwen said.  
  
"I had a dream-," Airesiwe began, only to be interrupted by Gandalf and many other elves.  
  
"Sleep-walked?"  
  
"Impossible."  
  
"It must have been a really strong dream.." Airesiwe barely listened. She looked around; Rivendell was filled with sunlight, the birds were chirping away, and there was much commotion, like always.  
  
"Just a dream." Airesiwe sighed. "Just a dream."  
  
"Anyhow, she is fine now," Gandalf started. "No use arguing over something that has past. You are going to the council, right Airesiwe?"  
  
"Council?"  
  
"Have you not heard?" Gandalf was quite surprised by this news. "The council of Elrond, you have been invited. People far and wide had already arrived. We must discuss something very important." Gandalf helped Airesiwe up and pulled her over to an open area. "The ring, you do know about it?"  
  
"No.I'm afraid not."  
  
"Ugh...Airesiwe are you blind to the world around you? You do remember the rings of power Sauron the deceiver gave?" Gandalf's voice got low. "The one you had Airesiwe?"  
  
It was all clear now. Airesiwe, when she was quite young, found a ring in the city of Gondor. She was taken there for initiation, as to be a "Friend of the South." She received four other names as well. Her presence was confirmed by this simple phrase: Warrior of the West, Princess of the East, Spy of the North and Friend of the South. Anyhow, she found a ring in Gondor, and thinking nothing of it, kept it. When the elves returned to Rivendell, she put in on, but only for show. She saw the Great Eye and feared the ring for many years. Finally, she got rid of the ring by dropping it in a lake, not far from Rivendell. The ring was never heard of again until it was found in Bilbo's keeping. She never saw the Eye again either until last night.  
  
"Someone must have found it," Airesiwe whispered. "It's here in Rivendell, isn't it?"  
  
"Yes," Gandalf uttered, "Which is why we need you to attend the council. We must decide what to do with this new power, and you will help us decide." With that Gandalf left and followed the other elves to the place where the council would be held.  
  
The council was held outside. The sunlight was welcoming to the strangers that came: men, dwarves, and other elves from distant lands. There were many chairs that surrounded a large rock; smooth on the surface and about four feet tall. Airesiwe was about to sit down on one of the chairs when a familiar face met hers.  
  
"Legolas!" Airesiwe ran to catch up with him and embraced him in a large hug. "And to think we'd meet again in the very mists of Rivendell!" Airesiwe was over-joyed to see her brother, or at least what was supposed to be her brother.  
  
"Airesiwe, you are not part of the council? Are you?" Legolas said with great confusion.  
  
"Yes, why, do you think I am not worthy of participation in council's held at my own home?" Airesiwe laughed for the first time in days. "Surely you are not part of this council!"  
  
Legolas laughed back, "Hard to believe, but true."  
  
Elrond's voice could be heard above the company. "Attention, the council is about to start."  
  
Sitting next to Legolas, Airesiwe took a seat in a section that consisted of elves. She looked around at the people that were attending. There were two men, one that was Aragorn. He smiled at her and waved, and she responded back with the same smile. She no longer hated him. To the left, as well as across from the place she was sitting were some dwarves. Amazed, Airesiwe stared at them. She had rarely seen a dwarf before, but there appearance hadn't changed. They had long, braided beards, and were slightly taller than hobbits. They were wearing heavy armor and had axes and arrows by their side. The axes made Airesiwe worry a bit, but finally decide to keep looking. There were elves from the woods of Mirkwood, as well as other places that were unknown to her. Finally, there was Frodo and Gandalf to the right of her. They were sitting next to each other, and Gandalf seemed to be talking to Frodo. 'Frodo? Why is Frodo here?' Airesiwe thought to herself, but soon lost the thought when Elrond began to speak.  
  
"Friends from distant lands, you have been called forth to Rivendell to discuss the fate of the one ring."  
  
Mumbling spread across the council, when finally Elrond spoke again. "Frodo, bring forth, the ring." All eyes turned towards the hobbit's direction, as Frodo seemed to coward in his chair. Airesiwe's eyes were wide with surprise as she watched Frodo walked slowly towards the stone and place it on the surface. He walked back to his seat and smiled, as if taking off a heavy load. More mumbling occurred, mostly of awe and shock, but finally the man other than Aragorn rose.  
  
"So... this is... the one ring." The man trailed off as if it too much astonishment had caused his body to act different. "Such a little thing, yet so much power revolves around it." He walked towards the ring, hand outstretched, when suddenly shouting arose. It took awhile for Airesiwe to realize that the shouting was coming from Gandalf.  
  
"Boromir!" Gandalf boomed. "Do not take this ring as if it is to be used with cunning power. This is indeed the one ring, as not be used in the hands of men."  
  
Boromir was taken aback by this statement, but did not show fear.  
  
"Oh! And I suppose that you think that you can take this ring for yourself! That you can rule the world and turn us all away!"  
  
Gandalf's eyes flickered with anger, but said nothing.  
  
Elrond sat up. "It is quite obvious that we here cannot posses this ring, so we have only one choice. The ring of power must go back to the fires of Mount Doom, the one and only place in Middle Earth, where it can be destroyed."  
  
There was silence after the statement. Knowing that someone must do this, the council remained silent, fearing that they would be picked. Airesiwe, however, did not look at it that way. She stared at the ring for a long time and drained out everything else. The ring seemed to talk to her, with an unknown speech. Suddenly, her world started to spin, and the ring hypnotized her. She stared hard into it, until all of a sudden, something came in contact with the ring and the Eye of Sauron could be seen. Her world started to come back, and voices could be heard again. She snapped out of the trance and looked around. A dwarf lay on the floor.  
  
"It, it didn't break," the dwarf stuttered.  
  
"We cannot destroy it here, only in Mordor!"  
  
"And I suppose you think you can do it!"  
  
"Time is short, we must take it now."  
  
"Who will take it?"  
  
"What if Sauron finds us, what then?"  
  
Voices arose and a massive argument started. Airesiwe was going to join them, but the ring spoke again. She tried hard to snap out of the trance once more, but it didn't work. The ring took her. Without thinking, Airesiwe stood up and spoke.  
  
"I'll ta-."  
  
"I will take it!"  
  
Airesiwe was alarmed. A small voice in the crowd spoke up, but it wasn't her. She looked around in the council while everyone was arguing and finally came upon Frodo.  
  
"I will take it!" The hobbit said once more, only this time louder. The council silenced and stared at the young hobbit. The hobbit seemed smaller, and felt smaller. "Though, I do not know the way."  
  
Airesiwe got up and walked over to Frodo, who was not much shorter than her.  
  
"Life, or death, I will be here," Airesiwe said boldly, "at the end of all things, Frodo."  
  
Aragorn walked up to Frodo as well.  
  
"May this be a mission for both of us," He said. Along with him came the dwarf, Legolas, and finally Gandalf.  
  
"I will help you bear this burden, Frodo Baggins. As long as it is mine to bear." Everyone who stood up, along with Airesiwe stood in a long looking upon the council. Airesiwe was quite proud of what she did, and the ring was no longer a bother to her.  
  
"It is settled, you shall be-."  
  
"WAIT!" A young hobbit jumped out from the bushes behind the council and ran by Frodo. "Mr. Frodo isn't going anywhere without his gardener."  
  
The council laughed, and while doing so, two more young hobbits ran toward the line.  
  
"And you think you can leave us here!" The blonde hobbit said.  
  
"Yes! You need people of intelligence on this type of mission, quest, thing!" the brown one replied. The council laughed once more and Elrond finally spoke.  
  
"Ten companions. All right then, you are all in good hands, and I suspect that the ring will be destroyed. You shall be the Fellowship of the Ring!"  
  
"Right," the brown-haired hobbit sighed. "To Mordor!"  
  
"To Mordor!" The rest of the Fellowship replied. 


	7. Chapter 7

"To Mordor," Airesiwe thought as she walked back to her room. Today had been a very tough day, as well as confusing and frightening. She tried to figure out what the dream meant, but was too scared to even think about it. She walked into her room and lied down on her bed. She looked up at the ceiling and closed her eyes to dream. Nothing. She opened them and saw Arwen smiling down at her.  
  
"Must you always pester me before and after I awake?" Airesiwe demanding, but not in a harsh voice. "All I ask is that you be careful, such a foolish sister I have, going to Mordor." Arwen mumbled something else, but it was unknown to Airesiwe.  
  
Airesiwe looked into her sister's eyes. They reminded her so much of Aragorn. She strayed into thought as she reminded herself of her encounter with him in the woods, and how much she hated him. Then she strayed to his smile. 'I guess he isn't so bad after all.' She looked up at Arwen again and wondered if she really was her sister. Their hair was the same. Arwen's, a dark brown/black, and Airesiwe's a solid gold brown. Both their eyes were blue, but then again, all elves eyes appear to be blue. But she knew there was something. Something that separated Arwen and her, though she could not figure out what. It was as if everything was a secret from her. Just then Airesiwe remembered the dream she had earlier. The dream that started it all. She closed her eyes slowly, and thought deep and hard. Finally, it came to her.  
  
She was in a dark forest. The trees loomed over her, and she felt very small. She looked around her surroundings and saw that she was indeed small. Almost infant small. She looked ahead and saw fire and arrows whistled past her head. Screaming could be heard in every direction as large beasts and elves rushed past her. Then she saw something, someone like her. A blonde elf came forward amidst the screaming and torture, with a golden glow around her. She walked slowly towards Airesiwe. Suddenly something grabbed Airesiwe and the women stopped. The glow disappeared and she started screaming as well. Arms outstretched she seemed to be calling for her, calling for Airesiwe. Airesiwe tried to answer back but the thing that grabbed her but its hand over her mouth. The lady elf sobbed and kneeled down in defeat, as Airesiwe was dragged off, never to be seen again.  
  
"Airesiwe? Airesiwe are you listening to me?" Arwen looked at her with an impatient look on her face. "You don't look to good, are you feeling ok? I must admit Airesiwe you have been acting quite odd lately. Are you sure your alright?"  
  
"I'm.I'm fine just fine," Airesiwe mumbled to herself, although loud enough for Arwen to hear her.  
  
"You'd better be," Arwen said, and finally walked out of the room.  
  
Airesiwe continued her routine of staring at the ceiling when Frodo walked in.  
  
"Airesiwe? I just want to say, well, I just want to say thank you, for offering to come. I don't think all of those people would have come with me if you haven't." Frodo had a small smile on his face. "It seems that you and I are more alike then we both think." Suddenly, a scared expression crossed Frodo's face as her sat down on the bed. He seemed to be gripping his neck, although Airesiwe didn't know why at first. Finally, she remembered that Frodo had the ring.  
  
"Are you alright?" Airesiwe said with worry. "I, I'm not sure, but I think I know what you see. It's him..isn't it? It's-," Airesiwe cut herself off when she saw Frodo turn to her.  
  
"How do you know?"  
  
Suddenly Gandalf came into the room.  
  
"Sorry to interrupt you Airesiwe, but I must have a word with Frodo." Gandalf did not smile this time. Instead, he looked quite worried. "Frodo?"  
  
Frodo slowly got up still staring at Airesiwe with shock, then walked to Gandalf. Airesiwe did not mind. In fact, she was still very overwhelmed by today and before she knew it, she was asleep in her bed. She could hear the birds chirping in the distance, but little did she know that that would be the last time she would. 


	8. Chapter 8

Airesiwe awoke with a jump. It was still pretty dark outside, but not as it was before. She realized that she must have been asleep for more than a couple hours considering the fact that she fell asleep during the day. She yawned, and outstretched her arms.  
  
"Uh..it was the dream again," Airesiwe whispered to herself. She walked outside, and even during the dark, Rivendell was still welcoming. She stepped towards Rivendell's entrance, and passed the fountain. She had a sudden flashback that lasted about a second, and then it was gone. She shivered and walked faster past it. When she came to the entrance, she was surprised to see half of the Fellowship there. Legolas, the Dwarf, Aragorn and Boromir. She walked up to them, wondering why they were here so early.  
  
"Do you think it's enough?" She heard Legolas say. He then turned around and saw Airesiwe. He smiled and motioned his hand ordering Airesiwe to come closer. The men and dwarf turned around as well and welcome Airesiwe silently.  
  
"Do you think it's enough what?" Airesiwe questioned. There were two horses, one brown and one white. The men seemed to be loading supplies on them.  
  
"Just preparing for the journey," the dwarf said half-heartedly. "Don't want to be unprepared for it. We'll need enough food, weapons,..."the dwarf trailed off and mumbled the rest of the sentence. Airesiwe noticed that there weren't enough horses to fit the supplies.  
  
"I could get Firnephel," Airesiwe suggested. She ran to get him but Legolas stopped her.  
  
"We can't afford any more delays," Legolas said sternly. "Firnephel might just be one of them."  
  
Airesiwe was shocked with Legolas's reaction, but not so shocked as to give in to what he said.  
  
"If you cannot use him for your use, at least let me use him for mine." Airesiwe's eyes got cold. Legolas stood back with shock as well, but finally motioned her to get the horse. Airesiwe ran to the dark field and searched for her horse. He was over by a small pond, alone. Airesiwe remembered that all of the horses usually go in for the night and wondered why he was still out. She came over to Firnephel and patted him softly from behind. This startled Firnephel at first, but then realized that it was his owner and relaxed.  
  
"Remember how I said that we should go on an adventure?" Airesiwe said quietly. Firnephel nudged up against her with big brown eyes and seemed to smile with agreement. "Well now's our chance, come on." Airesiwe coaxed him out of the field and led him to the Fellowship.  
  
When she arrived she noticed that all of the Fellowship was there. They were about to leave when Airesiwe jumped on Firnephel's back and rode towards them. Legolas and the dwarf rode the white horse, while Boromir rode the brown one. When Airesiwe arrived most of the Fellowship sighed with relief; Frodo especially.  
  
"Airesiwe do you mind, helping us start the journey by sharing a spot on Firnephel?" Gandalf said politely. This worried Airesiwe, considering the fact the Firnephel was deeply afraid of anyone but her riding him. But she agreed nonetheless. Gandalf mounted one of the dark haired hobbits in front of Airesiwe, and to her surprise, Firnephel did not react. He simply snorted once or twice and started walking. All ten of the Fellowship left Rivendell, and all the time Airesiwe worried. 'Did anyone tell Arwen?' This worry soon passed as they rode out of Rivendell. In the distance, Airesiwe seemed to hear screeching.  
  
The night soon turned into morning, and most of the Fellowship seemed tired. Firnephel showed no signs of it though, and kept walking. Finally, after hours of walking, they came across a wide plain, with large white stones in the middle of it.  
  
"We shall rest here for awhile," Aragorn said panting. The fellowship understood and walked slowly towards the rocks. Airesiwe kept wondering how they could be so tired, but obeyed anyhow. They scattered their supplies around once they got there and decided to eat. Quickly they built a fire and cooked sausages over it. All seemed well for the moment. The two imprudent hobbits were practicing sword fighting with Boromir, while Sam and Frodo watched. Aragorn sat nearby smoking a weed, and Gandalf, the dwarf, and Legolas were discussing which way to go. Finding nothing better to do, Airesiwe wondered about the plain. Suddenly, she spotted something.  
  
"Legolas!" Airesiwe shouted. She looked to the sky and spotted what seemed like a black cloud coming towards them. It was going against the wind, which was very suspicious to Airesiwe. "Legolas, what is that?!" Airesiwe shouted once more.  
  
Legolas ran towards Airesiwe and looked at the sky as well. "Crows," Legolas said slowly. By this time most of the Fellowship was walking over to them to see what was wrong. Gandalf came by Airesiwe andstarted at the sky with another one of his worried expressions. "Spies of Saruman.LET'S MOVE!"  
  
The Fellowship frantically scrambled around the rocks cleaning up what they had left. The horses reared up and neighed in hope of someone to comfort them. Airesiwe grabbed the weapons and scampered under a nearby rock. The crows came at a fast speed and circled the rocks. Luckily, the Fellowship was well hidden. All the time Airesiwe kept saying to herself 'They've spotted us, they've spotted us, they've spotted us!' but no matter what she kept saying to herself, it was no use. The crows circled and circled then finally left. The fellowship wandered out from where they were hiding, but Airesiwe stood still until the crows were out of sight.  
  
"Airesiwe? You can come out now," the blonde hobbit persuaded. Airesiwe came out shaking, but once she saw Frodo, stopped immediately. 'The last thing I need is Frodo thinking I'm a wimp.' Airesiwe thought to herself.  
  
The Fellowship carried on, and by Gandalf's decision, was ordered to take the path over the Caragras Mountains. They created a line: Gandalf in front, then the four hobbits, Airesiwe, Legolas, the dwarf, Aragorn, then Boromir. The more they traveled up the path, the steeper the path got. Before they knew it, they were at the point where they could barely walk. To make matters worse, it started snowing heavily. Airesiwe, not used to this, started falling behind. Soon, she became the last in line. The snow blinded her as she tried hard to catch up, but it was no use. Gradually, she heard frantic shouts, then saw two people chasing something down the mountain. It didn't take long for Airesiwe to realize that the thing they were chasing was Frodo. He was rolling down the mountain! Frantically, Airesiwe ran up to him and stopped his fall. She offered to help him up, but all he did was search for the necklace that carried the ring. He stopped, and looked up with a panic expression on his face. The ring was gone. With the snow blowing in their faces there was surely no hope in finding it. Aragorn and Boromir were ahead and seemed to get the message. Hastily, the men started searching through the snow. Frodo got up and started to search another area when Boromir found it. Aragorn, Frodo, and Airesiwe all looked up with nervousness as Boromir stared at it.  
  
"Odd, how, such a little thing can disrupt Middle earth. It's so small," Boromir chuckled, "So small."  
  
"Give it back." A stern voice erupted from the silence. Everyone turned to look at who said it.  
  
"What did you say?" Boromir said, a little shocked.  
  
"You heard me," Airesiwe said, "Give the ring back to Frodo."  
  
Everyone stood in awe at Airesiwe, but saw it coming. Boromir looked at the ring one last time, then finally stomped through the snow to Frodo. He dropped the ring in Frodo's hang and walked away. Airesiwe couldn't see very well at this point, but she could have sworn she saw Aragorn put his sword back in its scabbard. 


	9. Chapter 9

The fellowship continued their journey up the path of Caragras. It was still snowing quite abundantly, and dispite the previous incident, Airesiwe was still far behind. The snow stung her eyes as she strained to keep them open, even though it showed no use. The fellowship was out of sight. She plowed her body through the snow and staggered along. The day grew to darkness, and it was even harder to see. Giving up, she finally shouted.  
  
"Frodo? Legolas?! Somebody please help!" Airesiwe listened for an answer, but found none. Defeated, she sat down in the snow and sobbed.  
  
"I'm here," a small voice echoed. Airesiwe turned around and was quite surprised to see Frodo standing behind her shivering in the cold. Firnephel snorted, and Airesiwe almost forgot he was there. Airesiwe got up and offered Frodo a ride on Firnephel out of politeness, but he refused. Instead, they both walked close to each other towards the direction of the Fellowship. The warmth of Frodo's body kept her awake and full of energy until they finally caught up to the rest of the alliance.  
  
When they finally arrived, Airesiwe saw Gandalf standing up chanting some unknown words. They seemed to be some type of black speech phrase, but Airesiwe could not understand it. The clouds darkened, making it darker than it was before, which made the fellowship worry. Suddenly, from further up the mountain, a large snow cap came crashing down. Frantically, Airesiwe grabbed Frodo and Sam and threw them against the side of the mountain to dodge the avalanche. Airesiwe, however, wasn't so lucky. Right before she thrashed herself against the side of the mountain, the avalanche came roaring down on her.  
  
Blinded by the snow, Airesiwe gasped for breathe, but that did not stop her. She moved the snow aside and reached her arms upward. Her hands met air and she shoved the snow away just in time. Her head popped up from under the snow as she gasped for breathe. Her eyes closed and someone pulled her to her feet. She opened them and saw Boromir standing besides her.  
  
"Quick on your feet, use your wits, maybe you won't be such a burden after all," and with that he walked away.  
  
"A burden!" Airesiwe said to herself. "He's the burden!" Boromir turned around and looked at Airesiwe, hate in his eyes. Airesiwe glared back and turned towards Gandalf.  
  
"A wizard should know better!" Gandalf yelled, but then looked at the faces of the Fellowship and realized complaining wouldn't be of any use here.  
  
"We cannot continue this way!" Aragorn shouted. "Let us go through the Mines of Moria!"  
  
"Your insane!" The blonde hobbit yelled, "We can do this let's just keeping going!" Arguing broke out and soon Gandalf stopped it.  
  
"Only one person can decide the fate of us all," Gandalf said. He looked towards Frodo, "As a Fellowship, we must let the leader decide."  
  
All eyes moved towards Frodo. Airesiwe felt like saying something, but she knew it would go nowhere. Instead, she too look at Frodo and prayed that he didn't suggest taking the Mines of Moria. She heard stories about the place under the mountains and feared it very much. Rumor said that evil was always awake there, and that there was a monster made out of ash and flame. Airesiwe wondered what it would be like to be made out of flame, and to live in the shadows. She hoped she never found out.  
  
"We will go through the Mines of Moria," Frodo said.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ *~*~*~*~  
  
After a couple of hours, Airesiwe and the Fellowship arrived at the gates of Moria, though it did not look like it. It was simply a very high wall in Airesiwe's eyes. Gandalf led them on to a specific spot in the wall and turned around facing the Fellowship.  
  
"My friends, you have reached the door of Moria." With that, the light of the full moon shone brightly in the night and caused the wall to shine. A design that resembled a door shone upon it. The fellowship awed in wonder.  
  
"What must we do to get inside?" The brown-haired hobbit asked.  
  
"Well it's quite easy. All you have to do is speak the password and the doors will open." Gandalf took his staff and pressed it up against the door. He spook a few Elvish words and waited. Nothing. He did it again. Nothing. Airesiwe got bored of this and headed towards the nearby river.  
  
The river was quite large, and tremendously deep. Airesiwe looked into it at saw that it was black, and matched the darkness surrounding her. She sat down near the shore and watched as still ripples moved from the center.  
  
"Airesiwe," Aragorn said. "Come here." Airesiwe walked over to where the man was along with Legolas and the three horses. "We must let the horses go, help us upload if you can." Airesiwe was intrigued by this news and spoke without thinking.  
  
"No!" Airesiwe shouted and ran towards Firnephel. Legolas followed her and stood behind her white she patted him. Tears started to come to her eyes, but she strained to hold them back. "I can't let him go, not now, NOT EVER!" Airesiwe was startled by what she said and looked up and Firnephel with her watery blue eyes. "Not ever." she whispered. She turned her head around slowly and saw Legolas there with his hands on his hips.  
  
"You better not say anything you'll regret to that horse," Legolas said sternly. Airesiwe turned her head back to Firnephel.  
  
"You know the land well," she whispered quietly. She turned and looked at Legolas again, then back at her horse. "Culephel Telepgrod Phersarn Artûr Firnquárë (Meet me on the other side of the mountains). Laume kaure"  
  
"No!" Legolas shouted, but it was too late. Airesiwe motioned Firnephel in the opposite direction that they came and he was off. Legolas tried to chase after him but gave up quickly. He turned around and glared at Airesiwe. She simply smiled and made her way towards the gate again.  
  
When she arrived by Gandalf, he was sitting on a nearby rock in defeat. Most of the Fellowship had wandered around and were nowhere to be seen. Only a couple hobbits, along with Legolas and Aragorn were nearby. The door was still closed.  
  
Airesiwe looked at the door and sighed. It was a riddle. Within herself she chuckled at the stupidity of the wizard, but bit her tongue so it was not obvious.  
  
"Melon," Airesiwe said clearly, and with that the door opened. Gandalf stared in amazement while Airesiwe walked inside. Airesiwe couldn't help but let out a small laugh, for the riddle clearly said: What round fruit do you eat starts with a M?  
  
Gandalf followed her along with the rest of the Fellowship. It was very dark inside the mines, as well as mysterious. Airesiwe kept stepping in something, but she couldn't see what. Gandalf held up his staff, and chanted some more elvish words, then a small white glow appeared. It got bigger and bigger until Airesiwe could finally she ahead of her. Though she wished she never had. The mine was full of corpses and bones scattered everywhere, and she finally realized that she had been stepping in it all along. She stepped backwards and fell backwards and her back. She turned around so she was on her stomach and saw a corps's face next to hers. It's eyes were white and the mouth appeared to be screaming. Airesiwe let out a small scream that didn't last long. She got up, only to be dragged down again. Whatever pulled her down dragged her out of the mine and started to lift her in the air. She looked down and saw that in the river was a large beastly creature that had many tentacles. One of its tentacles was wrapped around her ankle. She screamed once more and took out her bow and arrows. She shot the creature in what appeared to by the head, though she wasn't quite sure. The creature dropped her in the water. Airesiwe went down quite a ways considering she was dropped from a tremendous height. She saw something shine in the black water, and instead of going up for more air, decided to swim deeper and see what it was. She pulled the water and tried desperately to swim farther down dispite the air pressure. Finally she reached it. She was nearly out of breathe and grabbed the item and swam precariously towards the surface. She finally reached the surface and saw the beast and the Fellowship attacking one another. She looked at what she grabbed after her head stopped spinning and saw that it was a sword, and a very fine one too. Treasuring the new item, she ran towards the beast and chopped off one of its tentacles. It screamed in agony and turned its attention towards Airesiwe. Airesiwe dodged most of its attacks except one. The beast thrashed its tentacle at Airesiwe and knocked her out temporarily. Once she hit water though, she snapped out of it. One of the dark-haired hobbits cried for help, and she saw that she was being lifted into the air. Airesiwe ran towards him, coughing out water along the way, and cut the tentacle that held him. The hobbit screamed and fell with great speed towards the water. Luckily, Airesiwe caught him and ran towards the entrance of Moria.  
  
"Get into the mines!" the dwarf shouted. "Airesiwe! Get in here!"  
  
She dropped the hobbit and ran to meet the monster again.  
  
"What are you doing?!" Someone called, although Airesiwe didn't pay any mind. She slowly took out an arrow and aimed it at the monster. She let go and the arrow flailed into the eye of the creature. It groaned and with all of its strength attempted to get out of the water. Airesiwe ran inside just as the wall started to collapse. She dove inside and could feel her head get hit with something, though she did not care what. She walked a little ways and could see the Fellowship running towards her. She groaned and threw herself down quickly to the ground. 


	10. Chapter 10

Airesiwe was not out long after she felt a throbbing pain in her back. Her body was numb and she was in a cold, dark place. When circulation finally became active in her body, she realized that the throbbing pain was actually the dwarf hitting her on the back with the edge of his boot.  
  
"Finally! I believe this elf is waking up," the dwarf did not cease the pounding. "We could have already made it through Moria, if only you had listened to me." Airesiwe was alarmed.  
  
"Who are you?? What am I.I mean..where am I?" Airesiwe still hadn't recovered from her fall.  
  
"Why, do not know? I am Gimli, son of Gloin, and you are in Moria." Airesiwe took a couple seconds to remember, and finally did.  
  
"Oh yes, that's right. I'm terrible sorry for causing all this trouble." Airesiwe sighed. The fellowship was sitting in a circle and seemed to be talking about something. She got up and brushed herself off, then swayed a bit and did it again. "I'm quite fine now, I believe we should be going now." The Fellowship turned around and sighed with relief. Airesiwe was quite embarrassed at the trouble she had cause and her cheeks turned a bright red. Luckily, it was too dark in Moria to even see her face. 'This is it. This is the last time I'm going to faint. I'm a warrior now, and I might as well prove it by not fainting.' Airesiwe never fainted before, and was never this clumsy. She promised herself that she wouldn't ever faint again.  
  
The Fellowship carried on through the dark journey through the mines. Gandalf's staff was used as a guiding light, and was very helpful to the Fellowship. Airesiwe volunteered to go last though so it was obviously not a help to her. The dark haired hobbit was in front of her and was quite slow, so she didn't feel intimidated by the quick speed of men. The Fellowship walked on for three and a half days, stopping once in a while in between. Airesiwe looked at Frodo and saw the pain in his eyes, but saw something else as well. Her eyes strayed to his belt and she saw her sword 'Sting'. Although she could not see very well in the darkness of Moria, she thought she saw a blue tint to it..  
  
It was the forth day. They were only a couple of miles from the bridge that would lead them out of the darkness. The Fellowship, luckily, had not seen or heard any creatures in the dark until today. Airesiwe spotted a creature in a dark ravine. The creature was small, partially naked, and had large green eyes that glinted in the dark. The creature looked around and finally looked up at Airesiwe. Airesiwe turned her head and continued walking, only to hear a sharp hiss in reply.  
  
Finally, they came to a small room. A hole on the side of the mountain had been made and casted a light on what looked like a tomb. Gimli stopped, and ran forward screaming, "NO!" The Fellowship followed and came across it. On the white tomb made out of stone were engravings that read: Here lies Barlin, Lord of Moria. Gimli put his helmet on the tomb and wept. Gandalf walked over to the dwarf and put his hand on his shoulder.  
  
"Do not weep now Gimli, for more tragic things are yet to come."  
  
Airesiwe walked over to what looked like a well and peered inside. A light seemed to come from the inside. 'Don't follow it,' Airesiwe said to herself and turned away as quickly as possible. She looked back in and saw that the light was gone. 'Strange' she thought again. The dark-haired hobbit came besides Airesiwe and looked inside the wall. His eyes met hers and she felt a strange feeling that didn't last long. She looked away at Gandalf who was reading aloud an ancient book that the dwarves wrote before they died, but Airesiwe wasn't really listening. The hobbit, out of curiosity, touched the finger of a skeleton that was sitting on top of the well.  
  
"NO! DON'T!" Airesiwe shouted and pushed the hobbit aside. The skeleton's head came off and rolled inside the well. Crashing erupted from the silent room as the Fellowship turned in surprise to face Airesiwe and the hobbit on the floor. The whole skeleton soon fell in along with in, making even a bigger noise. The crashing didn't seem to stop and kept echoing throughout Moria. When it finally did silence Airesiwe and the hobbit got up with shame. Airesiwe was overwhelmed to see that the Fellowship was in face staring at her, not the hobbit. Airesiwe looked in her hand and saw part on the skeleton's finger in her hand. She then remembered the hobbit still holding on to the finger when she pushed him and stood in dismay.  
  
"AIRESIWE!" Gandalf boomed and slapped the book shut. "I should have known someone like you would do some stupid thing like that! Never trust an elf. Especially one that is such a burden as you! I knew you shouldn't have come I knew it!" most of the Fellowship looked in agreement at the sorrowful elf. Airesiwe threw the piece of bone aside and strained herself from crying. Tears welled up in her eyes but she blinked them away. Suddenly she heard drums. She looked carefully down in the well and saw a flicker of orange light. The drums got loader and faster as she backed up into the brown haired hobbit. She looked down at him at saw his fearful eyes and thought 'Maybe it was worth taking the blame for this hobbit.' Without further words, the two men ran towards the door and closed it.  
  
"They have a cave troll! Draw your weapons!" Boromir shouted before almost getting hit with an arrow. Airesiwe suddenly remembered the sword she found and drew it out. Frodo drew his sword as well and it glowed a bright blue. Airesiwe looked down at the brown haired hobbit and gave him her sword.  
  
"Use it well," Airesiwe said and ran to the tomb. She jumped on top of it and drew her bow and arrow and aimed it at the door. The door started to move as the orcs tried to make their way inside the room. Screeching could be heard on the other side and the Fellowship was tense and nervous. Not Airesiwe though. She was red with anger and decided to show the Fellowship that she was not such a burden to have. She pulled her arrow back and aimed it and the door. Small swords started to break the door but Airesiwe thought faster. She released her arrow and it went through a hole in the wall and hit an orc. Another arrow (Legolas's) hit one as well. Airesiwe fired again, and for every shot Legolas made, Airesiwe shot twice. One thing about Airesiwe and her intense training was that she had never missed a target in her life, and planned to keep it that way. Finally, the door broke. And that very second swarms of vicious, dirty, evil-looking orcs entered the small room in which the Fellowship were hiding. 


	11. Chapter 11

The orcs piled in and constant arrows flew past Airesiwe's head. She pulled back another arrow and somehow hit two orcs at once. The orcs were too busy attacking the Fellowship in order to notice Airesiwe's position on the tomb. Airesiwe quickly turned her head and watched as an orc crept up behind Frodo.  
  
"NO!" Airesiwe screamed and ran up to the orc. Using an arrow, she slayed the orc, but was now on the ground where there was most of the danger. She used the same arrow that she used to stab the orc and stabbed yet another. Orcs were piling in and soon enough, Airesiwe knew that they would be outnumbered. Not long after that thought, a large cave troll came in. Airesiwe's eyes met his and the troll stomped over towards her. He lifted his club and slammed in on the ground just before she dove under his legs. She used two of her last arrows to stab both of the troll's legs at once. The troll roared, and staggered (almost stepping on Airesiwe). Airesiwe tried to crawl away, but she was too slow. The troll lifted his foot and planted it on Airesiwe stomach. Airesiwe screamed in pain, but the troll did not budge. She saw Legolas aim an arrow at the troll's head, and missed. Airesiwe looked behind her and saw yet another troll stomped in the room followed by more orcs. Airesiwe turned back still gasping for breathe and saw Legolas aim another arrow at the troll.  
  
"NO! DON'T!" Airesiwe screamed, but it only came out as a whisper. The arrow hit the troll in the head, and one more hit him in the eye. The troll lifted his foot, and Airesiwe desperately tried to crawl away. The troll swayed and finally fell backwards, right on top of Airesiwe. She choked and could feel the black blood seeping from its body on her. She tried to move, but couldn't. The troll was over 5 times her weight. She felt dizzy. 'No! I told you no matter what, don't faint!' Airesiwe reminded herself. She lifted her arms and strained with all her might and managed to lift the troll a little ways up, but not enough to move it away from her. Instead, she slowly wedged herself a little ways to the left in order to get out. She did this for what seemed like an eternity until finally she managed to breathe and could see light. She coughed up blood and laid there for awhile until she heard screams. She lifted her head slowly up and saw Frodo; face pale, with what looked like a spear inside him. Her looked over at Airesiwe lying on the ground and dropped dead. Airesiwe screamed and dragged herself over towards him. She picked up an orc arrow she found nearby and aimed it at the troll and shot it. The troll turned around and glared at Airesiwe, taking the arrow out. Airesiwe picked up another and did the same thing. The troll was becoming more and more enraged and finally ran over towards Airesiwe. She picked up an orc sword and charged towards the troll as well. She felt someone running besides her, and she turned her head to see who it was. Boromir was running besides her and suddenly dove at her, tackling her to the ground. Airesiwe was confused by his action and finally realized that the troll had actually taken the chain he was holding and thrashed it towards her. Boromir had saved her.  
  
She looked up towards the troll and saw many arrows dive into it. Legolas and Aragorn didn't stop shooting until finally the troll fell to the ground dead. Airesiwe felt dizzy again, and her head felt like it was going to explode. 'Don't faint' she told herself again. 'You mustn't faint'. She picked herself up and looked around the room. The floor was covered with orcs and spears and many weapons. The room started to spin, so she looked towards the ground and saw a head corpse. Airesiwe was very close to fainting at this time. 'Don't.don't faint' Airesiwe whispered, and suddenly at that moment, she remembered Frodo. She ran towards him and saw him on the ground with a long spear that still remained inside him. Airesiwe kneeled down next to him and started to cry and look around. Everyone was crying as well. Even the dwarf. She looked at him and saw his chest fall and rise. Her tears stopped.  
  
"He's still alive!" Airesiwe cried. She put her hand on his face and whispered some words, then remembered that she had used all of her powers. Remembering this she sobbed once more before seeing Frodo's cheeks redden and life stir in his eyes.  
  
"It's okay, I'm quite fine," Frodo said without worry. "I had mithril on." He unbuttoned his shirt and showed the Fellowship the jeweled cloth that saved his life.  
  
"It's as tough as dragon scales, and as light as a feather." Frodo sighed, "Although I wish it felt like feathers." Frodo looked up at Airesiwe and smiled. Airesiwe smiled back and was thankful he was okay.  
  
**************************************************************************** ****  
  
The Fellowship carried on for about a day more. Because of their delay they had missed a chance of escaping Moria by a day. Airesiwe was no longer dizzy nor tired. She walked beside Frodo and trudged on through the dark place. Gandalf was smiling, and suddenly lifted up his staff and made an even brighter light. The surroundings were clear, they were in the palace of Moria. Tall, long poles from the ceiling to the ground towered about the Fellowship. Airesiwe looked up in awe and thought 'No one in Rivendell will believe this.' She looked over at Frodo who was looking at her. He turned his face away as if in shame of looking upon her, but she cared not. Instead she looked at his sword. It shimmered and glowed a bright blue. Airesiwe turned around in alarm and saw yellow eyes in the distance. She plowed through the Fellowship and ran towards the front by Gandalf. She drew her bow and arrow and ran ahead.  
  
"Airesiwe! Come back here at once!" Gandalf yelled. His voice echoed among the walls and poles and Airesiwe stopped. The eyes were gone.  
  
Airesiwe panicked and looked around, but couldn't find them. Then she heard it. Loud screeching, but not like the ones she heard before, could be heard near the tops of the pillars. Small black shadows crawled down the poles and jumped onto the floor. These were orcs, but not like what she saw before. These had large eyes that resembled cat's eyes and they were smaller with weaker swords. Although they were weak, Airesiwe knew that she was done for. The entire hall that they were in was covered with orcs. Only a small patch wasn't', and that was because that was where the Fellowship was. Back to back the Fellowship formed a circle. Airesiwe stood next to Legolas and aimed her arrow at a random orc. The orcs shrieked in victory and started moving towards them. Airesiwe closed her eyes and took a deep breath but then stopped. In the distance, a large BOOM could be heard. The orcs turned their heads towards the way out and screamed in fear. A large red glow could be seen and smoke rose from inside. The orcs ran back up the pillars and were never seen again. The dwarf looked around pleased but Airesiwe looked discouraged. The flame was still seen at the doorway, and she knew that was the only way out. She peered over her shoulder and saw Gandalf leaning on his staff in deep thought. The flame grew and seemed to block the doorway. Gandalf opened his eyes and looked in the direction of the flame. The flame died down and soon vanished.  
  
Airesiwe looked at the doorway with a puzzled expression.  
  
"RUN I SAY!" Gandalf shouted and ran towards the doorway. The Fellowship along with Airesiwe followed closely.  
  
They ran on through the exit of the palace and made their way towards the bridge that connected to the exit out of Moria. Airesiwe ran down steps, up steps, and finally came to the first bridge. There was a gap between where she was standing and the bridge itself. The first to jump was Legolas. He turned around quickly and shouted for Gandalf. Gandalf turned around and saw the flame rise again, then diminish. Gandalf turned back around and leaped over towards Legolas. Next to go were the two young hobbits. Legolas yelled the names Merry and Pippin and Airesiwe looked at wonder at the hobbits. 'So that's what they're called,' Airesiwe thought and looked upon them. Gimli was next, and his jump was a little short. Legolas stepped forward and caught him just in time. Gimli looked up at the elf with a look of displeasure on his face and stepped away. Boromir and Sam came next and easily jumped to the other side. Finally, came Aragorn, Airesiwe, and Frodo's turn. Airesiwe looked down and saw the floor of the bridge crumble beneath her. She jumped back and that floor crumbled too. She ran back towards the entrance and finally the crumbling stopped. Aragorn looked at Airesiwe and sighed. The bridge was now barely within jumping range. Aragorn ran back, then turned around a ran towards the gap. He yelled and jumped, barely making it to the other side. Airesiwe knew that because of her height she would never be able to make it. Suddenly, a large boulder dropped from the ceiling and went through the ground behind her. Within seconds, Airesiwe and Frodo were balancing on a small patch of rock holding them up. The rock swayed back and forth, and without warning, it started to fall to the side. Airesiwe pushed Frodo off towards the other side of the bridge where he was caught by Aragorn. The rock continued to fall and Airesiwe jumped toward the bridge. Her feet touched the tip of the bridge, then she fell backwards. Her hands were everywhere and all of a sudden they met the edge of the bridge. She opened her eyes and found herself hanging from the bridge. She peered over the top of the bridge and saw the Fellowship running away towards the exit without her! Her fingers were slipping and she tried hard not to let go. She strained her muscles and finally managed to lift herself up. She sat at the end of the bridge and looked towards where they entered. The glow was back. A thought came to her mind, and finally she remembered the Balrog. She got up and ran in the direction that the Fellowship went as fast as she could and when she turned around, she could see a figure that made up the flame. 


	12. Chapter 12

The flame grew and a black shadow appeared. Airesiwe stood facing the Balrog and felt like her heart had stopped pounding.  
  
"No! Not now, not now," Airesiwe whispered and finally ran towards the bridge of Khazad-dum, the one bridge that would lead her out of Moria. As she ran she could feel the Balrog stomping close behind her. She ran and dared not to look back, when at last she saw the Fellowship on the bridge waiting for her. She could hear faint cries as her named was yelled out, but was too busy even then to notice or care. Sweat gathered in her mouth and the Balrog was close behind. Finally, she reached the bridge and ran with the Fellowship across it.  
  
When they reached the end of the bridge Airesiwe was overjoyed. She could already see the light from outside and smell the fresh green grass. She turned around, and a look of horror spread across her face. Gandalf was still on the bridge. The Balrog and Gandalf were facing each other, as if ready to fight. The Balrog held a whip made out of fire in its hand, and Gandalf held his magical staff.  
  
"You shall not pass!" Gandalf roared above the flickering flame of the Balrog. The Balrog made no effort to leave or attack him. Instead, he whipped his fiery weapon as if giving Gandalf a threat. The Balrog stepped forward and stretched out its black wings, towering over Gandalf's head.  
  
"You cannot pass!" Gandalf repeated, "For I wield a power more deadly than that whip of yours. You shall not pass!" With that Gandalf's staff lit up, blinding the Balrog and causing it to step back. Gandalf lifted it up and the light got brighter. The Balrog roared in pain. Finally, Gandalf thrashed the end of the staff on the bridge and the bright light went out. The Balrog turned around, pleased that the light was gone, and stepped forward. With that, the bridge collapsed and the Balrog fell in. Gandalf turned around, but a second too soon. For the bridge below him crumbled as well, and he fell into the darkness after the Balrog.  
  
The rest of the time in Moria was unclear to Airesiwe. All she remembered was running towards the end of the bridge and looking in. A bright red light glowed and vanished into the endless black pit. Airesiwe screamed and fell backwards looking at the ceiling of Moria, or searching for it, she could not remember. Screams and cries erupted from the Fellowship and a hand grabbed her arm and dragged her out into the blinding sunlight. They were out of Moria at last.  
  
The hand dragged her out and set her on the rocks outside of Moria. And there Airesiwe sobbed. Gandalf was gone; the one hope that she had was gone. Although she never cared for him much in the beginning, she did now. She looked at the hobbits' eyes and saw sadness that sent a shiver up her spine, and even Legolas, the one person she would have never seen cry, had a morose expression on his face. Everything seemed like slow motion, and she rested her head on the cold rock next to her. She closed her eyes and wished she was back home, back in Rivendell with Arwen and Firnephel.  
  
Firnephel.  
  
Airesiwe forgot about him and looked past her surroundings. Her eyes scanned the rocky plain they were on, but instead she saw something else. Someone was walking away from the Fellowship. It didn't take her long to figure out that that person was Frodo. She got up and walked towards him in order to try to comfort him, but a sturdy hand stopped her. She stared at the ground and that same hand lifted her face up to meet his. It was Legolas.  
  
"Leave him be sister," Legolas said holding back tears, "Leave him be."  
  
Airesiwe looked in the direction of Frodo and saw him looking at her again, except with different eyes. His face was red and his eyes were full of so much sadness that Airesiwe started crying again. She turned away quickly and walked towards the Fellowship again.  
  
"Get them up Legolas, Boromir, come Gimli we must be on our way," Aragorn shouted. "By nightfall, the very rocks we stand upon will be covered by the feet of orcs." Aragorn walked over to the brown-haired hobbit and lifted him up. "Come along Pippin, we mustn't linger now." With that Aragorn walked away. Not knowing what else to do, the Fellowship followed. Airesiwe walked behind them all, as usual, but looked behind her and saw Frodo, lagging behind. Airesiwe stopped and waited and by the time Frodo caught up with her, the Fellowship had wandered far away.  
  
"Many thanks Airesiwe," Frodo said with despair, "But not even you can comfort me now."  
  
**************************************************************************** **************  
  
A day passed, and Airesiwe grew tired. She had rationed the last of food that she packed and was now becoming quite hungry. The Fellowship had just finished cleaning up camp when the sun peeked over the horizon. The sunrise shone as the Fellowship stopped and admired the beautiful scenery. It was like an inspirational sign, and Airesiwe no longer felt hungry because of it.  
  
"Beautiful," Aragorn muttered, "we must be coming close to Lothlorien".  
  
"Lothlorien!" Airesiwe said while her eyes filled with wonder. "Oh, I have heard so many stories about the heavenly woods of Lorien! How I have always wished to go there, and now may it be fulfilled at last!" Airesiwe looked at Frodo, and could see a small glint of happiness in his eyes. Airesiwe turned towards the sunrise again and watched it, taking in every color and image and trying hard not to lose it in her memory. She ran up towards a nearby hill, still watching the sunrise, and reached the top. Her eyes strayed from the sunrise to the land that laid before her, and she gasped in awe. Below her was a large patch a forest that covered most of the land below her. Green trees towered above the ground and rose to the sky. Airesiwe stared at Lothlorien.  
  
She turned around and faced the Fellowship at the bottom of the hill smiling. "May we suffer no more!" she shouted and turned to face Lothlorien again. Then something happened that Airesiwe did not expect. Her vision dove down the hill and into the very heart of Lothlorien. Inside the woods, she spotted a familiar patch of trees. Airesiwe closed her eyes and turned away from Lothlorien, but when she opened them, her vision stayed the same. No matter what Airesiwe did her vision would not change and she always saw the patch of trees. Airesiwe kept her eyes open and watched intensely. The trees started to burn, and soon elves and orcs ran around screaming as arrows flew past Airesiwe's head. It didn't take long to realize that this was her dream that had been haunting her for as long as she could remember. A golden lady came forth and screamed as Airesiwe was dragged away. Above the screaming, she could hear her speak. 'I've been waiting for you,' it said in a haunting voice. Airesiwe opened her eyes and saw Lothlorien as she stood on top of the hill. She swayed a bit, and then fell without warning. Airesiwe rolled down the hill and closed her eyes. She could hear the voice still replaying in her head and the shouts of the Fellowship. Airesiwe didn't care. She didn't care if she could faint or not. She didn't care about her promise to Frodo. She didn't care about the Fellowship, and most of all, she didn't care about herself. She rolled down the hill picking up speed when finally she stopped. She opened her eyes and the world spun. She closed them and did not open them, for she saw no point. She gave into darkness and remembered nothing more. 


	13. Chapter 13

"Airesiwe? Wake up!" Airesiwe's eyes quivered. She opened them slowly and saw Aragorn kneel over her. Remembering her fainting promise all of a sudden she shook her head and jumped up. Right away, the world felt like a roller coaster, and her mind was all over the place, but she refused to show any signs of hurt or nervousness.  
  
"I'm, fine I'm fine," Airesiwe stuttered. "How long was I asleep?"  
  
"Asleep?!" Aragorn laughed. At this time the Fellowship had caught up to him and was peering down at her. "I hardly believe that one like you could fall asleep with that fall, are you sure your ok?" Airesiwe blushed at the comment, but answered quickly.  
  
"I'm fine, thanks." Airesiwe's sight had mostly regained at this time, and she looked at her surroundings. She was at the bottom of the hill, and Lothlorien laid at her feet. She winced as the two-second flashback appeared in her mind. She took a step forward, and wobbled a bit, but continued walking with the Fellowship. Somehow, once more, the Fellowship passed her up and she was last in line. She looked behind her and saw the hill she was standing on not too long ago, was actually a small cliff. 'No wonder it hurt so much,' Airesiwe thought as she rubbed her head. A bump had formed already. 'What more could I want,' Airesiwe reminded herself and trudged on through the entrance of Lothlorien.  
  
It was midday by the time they reached the entrance, but it was nothing special. Just a bunch of trees that seemed to grow up out of nowhere appeared, so the Fellowship along with Airesiwe went on through it. Although it was sunny outside, the trees seemed to darken the woods, making it look like dusk. Airesiwe could feel a chill up her spine when she entered, but paid no mind to it. The Fellowship looked relax, but inside, Airesiwe was very tense. At every sound that was made in the bushes or trees Airesiwe would turn her head in that direction. Frodo walked beside her, along with the other three hobbits, for they seemed quite tense as well. Just to be safe, Airesiwe drew her bow and arrow and held it out of sight.  
  
The trees became taller, and darker, and all that Airesiwe had thought this place would be, was crushed. For it was not dreamy, or a fantasy, but a threat and shadow world. A rustle occurred in the bushes nearby and Airesiwe quickly yelled and aimed her bow in that direction. It was just a rabbit. Airesiwe sighed and turned around only to be met by another arrow, but not hers. An elf stood before her and aimed a sharp, pointy arrow at her forehead. Airesiwe showed no fear of this stranger and drew her own bow and arrow as well. She looked out of the corner of her eye and saw that these strange elves had surrounded her and the Fellowship with their arrows drawn as well. She stared at the stranger and saw something strange in his eye. A glint of pleasure and happiness appeared, and Airesiwe smiled and lowered her bow. The stranger did the same and Airesiwe could tell it was a young boy elf, similar to her in actions and appearance. The young elf had brown hair that rustled in the wind and bright blue eyes. It looked similar to her almost. He was taller than her, but Airesiwe knew that everyone was, for her eternal youth spell kept her from growing more than four and a half feet. A moment occurred from the edge of her vision and she turned her head. A blonde haired, tall elf appeared.  
  
"Alkhuan, take the two elves to the higher levels," he said with a cold voice. Airesiwe saw an elf grabbed Legolas' arm and thrash him towards the ground. Airesiwe's eyes lit up with anger and she aimed her bow at the elf.  
  
"Touch him again, and I'll shoot you," Airesiwe said with the same cold voice. With a twitch of his hand, the head elf motioned all the elves to aim their arrows at her. All except the young elf. Airesiwe moved her arrow from one elf to the next, arguing to herself about which one she should kill first. The young elf put his hand on her shoulder and Airesiwe whipped around aiming the bow at him.  
  
"Don't think I won't kill you too," Airesiwe whispered. The young elf's eyes turned to stone and he lifted his bow as well. But instead of shooting her, he dropped his bow and grabbed her arms, twisting them into a painful position while dragging her off.  
  
"I knew it was too good to be true," Airesiwe uttered to herself as she and Legolas were hauled off with the rest of the woodland elves.  
  
**************************************************************************** **************  
  
After some time of struggling and pushing, the elves finally managed to get Airesiwe and Legolas to the middle level of the trees. They were placed in separate rooms, Airesiwe's smaller, and were told not to guard them. Airesiwe looked down at the floor of Lorien and sighed. Her hands were bound and her eyes were sore from the blindfold being ripped off. She went over to a nearby rock on the branch of a tree and put the rope on top of it. After much time, she managed to break the rope by pulling it back and forth over the rock. Her wrists had red marks around them, and already they were starting to bleed. She sighed once more and laid back in the mist of the tree branches. 'Luckily they have rooms,' Airesiwe said to herself and started to sing a song to ease the boredom.  
  
He chanted a song of wizardry, Of piercing, opening, of treachery Revealing, uncovering, betraying—  
  
Airesiwe stopped, coughing back tears, and decided to skip a verse.  
  
Then the gloom gathered; darkness growing In Valinor, the red blood flowing Beside the Sea, where the Nolder slew The Foamriders, and stealing drew Their white ships and white sails From lamplit heavens, the wind wails. The wolf howls, the ravens flee The ice mutters in the mouths of the sea The captives sad in Angband mourn Thunder rumbles, the fires burn—  
  
Airesiwe stopped and looked around the trees again, making sure there was no one around. She took a small quivering breath, and stopped. She could hear rustling below her. She peered over the branches that supported her room and saw a small figure climbing up the tree branches. She looked harder, and lent out her hand. The figure grabbed it, and Airesiwe helped him up. It was Frodo, and he sat down on the wooden floor gasping for breath.  
  
"Keep, keep going," Frodo said. "It's a lovely song, although filled with sorrow, if you don't mind, I would so very much love it if you would continue please." Tears welled up in Airesiwe's eyes, but she blinked them away.  
  
"I would rather not, Frodo, but I do know another song, quite similar I should say," Airesiwe looked at Frodo, and his eyes shimmered blue in the darkness. "I'm sorry if I kept you awake," Airesiwe blushed while saying this. "I didn't realize I was so loud."  
  
"Oh, dear me, no! It was because of your singing I could not get to sleep, yes, but it was because it was so lovely that I refused to sleep, please, if you don't mind, sing me another song." Frodo smiled and Airesiwe just couldn't refuse the plea. She took a small breathe and began.  
  
An Elven-maid there was of old, A shining star by day: Her mantle white was hemmed with gold, Her shoes of silver-gray.  
  
A star was bound upon her brows, A light was on her hair As sun upon the golden boughs In Lorien the fair.  
  
Her hair was long, her limbs were white, And fair she was and free; And in the wind she went as light As leaf of linden-tree.  
  
Beside the fall of Nimrodel, By water clear and cool, Her voice as falling silver fell Into the shining pool.  
  
Airesiwe looked up at Frodo and noticed that he had been staring at her the whole time. "It sounds a lot like you, the women you are singing about." Frodo smiled, then blushed tremendously. "I mean, keep going," Frodo laid down on the wall on the other side of the room and closed his eyes halfway.  
  
Where she now wanders none can tell, In sunlight or in shade; For lost of yore was Nimrodel And in the mountains strayed.  
  
Airesiwe looked up hoping to find Frodo asleep, but instead watching her with intense eyes. Airesiwe sighed and continued, skipping a few lines.  
  
The elven ship in haven gray Beneath the mountain lee Awaited her for many a day Besides the roaring sea.  
  
When dawn came dim the land was lost, The mountains sinking gray Beyond the heaving wave that tossed Their plumes a blinding spray.  
  
But from the West had come no word, And on the Hither shore No tidings Elven-folk have heard Of Amroth evermore.  
  
Airesiwe looked up and was relieved to see that Frodo had indeed fallen asleep. Carefully, she climbed out of her room and looked towards the top of the trees. Curiosity took hold of her, and she climbed towards the top. As she climbed, she could hear faint elf voices ahead. She climbed towards what looked like a yellow light coming from the upper level room. Airesiwe peeked her head inside when she reached it, still hanging slightly from the branches and listened.  
  
"I told you! Galadriel sensed something. Why else did we bring the two elves up here!"  
  
"We take elves captive no matter what Galadriel senses. I think this whole thing has driven her mad."  
  
"Shhhh..." one of the elves said quietly, and walked towards Airesiwe. Airesiwe ducked her head and held on to the floor of the room. She could see the feet of the elf as he walked passed. Then all of a sudden a hand grabbed hers and pulled her up, then throwing her towards the floor of the room.  
  
"WHAT? Who are you? ...."The elf suddenly trailed off, staring at Airesiwe and asked her, "Where are you from?"  
  
Airesiwe, still in shock from the violent shove towards the ground, stuttered, "I'm from Imladris."  
  
The elves stared in each other in shock.  
  
"Imladris?!" Only those from Lothlorien are able to get up here!" The head elf walked towards Airesiwe. "Are you sure that's where you're from?"  
  
"Yes..." Airesiwe trailed off again. She was told to keep the whole event of finding her in a basket secret. "That's where I was trained and raised." Airesiwe looked up into the elves' eyes and pulled herself away. Another elf grabbed her and pulled her up on her feet. Airesiwe stood looking at the ground, refusing to stare into the elf's eyes.  
  
"You lie..." the elf said slowly, "Only the Lothlorien folk can make it up here. There is obviously some mistake. You are not who you say you are," the elf tilted her chin upward and looked into Airesiwe's eyes. "You are not from Rivendell, you show no signs of it. You look just like—," the elf stopped and looked towards the door. A tall Lorien elf entered.  
  
"Sorry to interrupt you sir, but the young elf is wanted by Lady Galadriel."  
  
The elf turned back towards Airesiwe and let go of her chin. Airesiwe glared at the elf and walked away with the tall elf, unaware of what waited for her. 


	14. Chapter 14

Airesiwe walked along silently with the tall elf, rarely looking up. It was still very dark in Lothlorien, and candle-lit rooms were all that was visible in the darkness. They walked along the highest level in the trees, and when Airesiwe looked up, she could see the pale moon shining. Up ahead, she could see a very bright light in a large room, probably the largest room in Lorien.  
  
"Go in that room," the elf said, "The one up ahead. Someone very important wishes to speak with you my lady."  
  
'My lady?' Airesiwe thought. But soon the thought passed as she turned around and noticed that the elf had vanished. Cautiously, she stepped towards the room. With every step she took, whispers erupted in her head, though too many to understand. She tried to make them out, but only words like: Frodo, death and the ring were understandable. She felt herself getting heavier, and soon she was at the point where she couldn't breathe. With that, Airesiwe ran as fast as she could towards the room.  
  
Finally, what seemed like an eternity, Airesiwe arrived at the door of the large room. At this time, the whispers had stopped and Airesiwe was glad. For terror and fear was all that it sounded like. She carefully placed her hand on the doorknob and looked down. Quickly, she discovered that her hands were pale, and clammy. Without further ado, Airesiwe shoved the door open and fell onto the floor in the room. She opened her eyes and saw a great light covering every corner of the room. Airesiwe closed them and even then, brightness overtook her. For a second out of time she thought she was dead, then opened her eyes once more.  
  
Shock came upon her, for what she saw was something she never thought she would see. A lady with golden hair; a bright light surrounding her, came forth. Airesiwe looked up with wide eyes and her mouth open.  
  
"Who are you?" Airesiwe whispered while picking herself up.  
  
The lady eyes glowed and she smiled. "You know who I am, Airesiwe, do you not?"  
  
Airesiwe thought for awhile, observing the lady's features. Her eyes were a bright blue, like her own. In fact, the lady looked just like her, except her hair was a bright blonde that shone in the light. Airesiwe had not a clue of who this lady was, but had a faint thought that it was someone she knew, someone familiar.  
  
"I'm sorry," Airesiwe stuttered, "But I'm not sure we've met." Airesiwe looked at the lady once more, and her eyes got brighter. Airesiwe thought in her head, 'Why am I even here? It is obvious I do not know this lady. Why does she care who I am?'  
  
"I care deeply who you are, Airesiwe. And you should feel the same about me." Airesiwe's mouth fell open.  
  
"You, you, and then," Airesiwe could barely get the words out, "telekinetic powers!" Airesiwe shouted. "You have telekinetic powers! Oh how I have dreamed of someone who could have such a power as that!" Airesiwe closed her eyes and thought deep and hard. Soon enough, a thought came to her, though not her own.  
  
'Remember the dream, Airesiwe. Try to remember the dream.' Airesiwe shivered at the thought. For the dream she had seen occur to her was getting out of control. She now not only dreamed of the mysterious woods, and the lady—  
  
It hit her hard. "The lady in my dream...." Airesiwe trailed off in thought then looked the tall women straight in the eyes "You're that lady, aren't you?" Airesiwe could feel her breath getting short, and sat down on a nearby stool. The room darkened, but not in a depressing stage. The sun had just started to peak over the trees and the lady shone even more. Airesiwe prepared herself to talk, and finally words dragged out. "You're my mom."  
  
The lady smiled at kneeled down to her level. "Yes, Airesiwe, I am indeed your mother. You are not from Rivendell, but from the woods of Lothlorien. That is why you're blessed. A month after you were born, Lothlorien was under great attack by orcs. We fought as much as we could, but soon, hope faded. I took you outside in hope to run away, but the enemy found you first. A large orc jumped me and the basket you were in went flying. You hit the ground, and died. I thought I lost you Airesiwe. Nevertheless, the orc took you away. I never saw you since." Tears started to well up in her eyes. "But you didn't die. Apparently I received news that the orc was killed by another elf, and he took you to Rivendell. By the healing powers of Elrond, you were saved. It was then that the powers I gave you kicked in. The note attached to your basket, I did not write, but rather the elf that found you. They turned you into a warrior in order to help rebuild Lothlorien with stronger, better, magical elves. I see that that has helped am I not right."  
  
"Mother," Airesiwe said and fell into her mother's arms. They both sobbed as the sun came up and golden rays lit up the dim room. "I won't lose you again."  
  
****************************************************************************   
  


* * *

  
After more talk with Galadriel, her mother, Airesiwe made her way back to her room. As she climbed down to the middle level, she slipped. The branch fell from under her, and Airesiwe fell. She fell while hitting rocks and branches and each blow felt like being punched in the chest. She tumbled down the trees and finally landed in a pile of rocks, wood, and thorn bushes. Airesiwe whimpered, and crawled out of the bushes. She sat up and looked around the rotating blur of trees. She dared not look at her legs and arms, for fear that they might be too torn up to handle. But she knew she had to. She glanced at her legs and saw that they were scratched up pretty bad, blood smearing the outside of her pale skin. Her arms were in good condition scratchwise, but her left arm she couldn't move. She held back tears and cradled her arm, when a familiar figure appeared.  
  
"What happened?!" Legolas practically screamed. "You're covered in blood!" Legolas offered her help her up, but she refused, concentrating on the pain inside her arm.  
  
"I'm fine!" Airesiwe shouted back. By this time most of the elves in the trees had come down, and Merry and Pippin ran towards her to see what the commotion was about. "Just a bit shooken up is all." With that Airesiwe paced towards the rest of the Fellowship, who were eating a light breakfast.  
  
"We expect to get on the road by midday." Legolas said with a calmer voice. "Are you up for it?"  
  
"Of course." Airesiwe said. She stopped in her tracks when she said that and turned around. "I didn't mean to say that..." Airesiwe's jaw dropped. *I didn't mean to say that at all! I'm staying in Lothlorien.*  
  
"Then what did you mean?" Legolas said with a nonchalant look on his face.  
  
"I meant to say—Of course---," Airesiwe stopped again. *What's going on? It's like someone is literally controlling what I say.*  
  
By this time Legolas was becoming quite annoyed. "Airesiwe, I'm serious. I think that fall did something—."  
  
"NO! That's not it!" Airesiwe just decided to drop the subject and head over towards Frodo.  
  
"Did you sleep ok?" Airesiwe murmured. Frodo turned around and smiled when he saw her sitting by him.  
  
"Fine! Your singing works magic!" Frodo said. He seemed happier then when they entered Lothlorien, which was a good sign. "I know I can count on you whenever I'm down and depressed."  
  
Airesiwe blushed and looked at Aragorn, smoking a pipe not too far away. He glanced at Airesiwe and walked over towards her and Frodo.  
  
"May I ask why you are cradling you arm?" He said with question. Airesiwe looked down and forgot that she was. She looked up and Aragorn and smiled, then tried to move her arm in a normal position. It was no use. Even with the numbness of her arms and legs, it was still impossible to move.  
  
"I guess I'm still a bit in shock from my fall." Airesiwe muttered then walked away. She turned and looked at Frodo, who was still smiling. She would miss him terribly. For a hobbit, he wasn't that bad.  
  
As she turned around to leave, she bumped into Galadriel who was staring down at her with large blue eyes.  
  
*May I ask where you are going?* Galadriel said to Airesiwe telepathically. She did not drop her stare.  
  
*Nowhere. I'm staying here. I belong here Mother, this is where I was meant to be from the beginning.* Airesiwe looked at her mother again, this time matching her stare.  
  
*You belong with the Fellowship,* Galadriel turned towards them, then stooped down to Airesiwe's level. "You belong with Frodo," she whispered.  
  
Airesiwe looked over at Frodo, who was still eating. Sam and the other hobbits were packing up though. She saw some Lothlorien elves arranging some wooden Lorien canoes for their trip.  
  
*He will need you before the end, Airesiwe.* Galadriel continued. Her stare lightened a bit, and Airesiwe felt better.  
  
*I wish not to leave you again mother* Airesiwe said back, *I don't want to lose you again.*  
  
Galadriel's eyes at this point softened. She put her hand on Airesiwe shoulder. "Through life, or death, we will meet again."  
  
Airesiwe's vision blurred, and she tried desperately not to let a tear fall. "If it's what you desire, mother," Airesiwe looked on last time at Frodo. Frodo looked back, smiled, and waved at her. "Then I will see it done." With that, Airesiwe hugged her and turned back towards the Fellowship, who were already packing up the canoes.  
  
"Need help?" Airesiwe asked Boromir, who was piling the canoes with food, mostly the elven bread.  
  
"Not with an arm like that," Boromir muttered under his breath, then turned and walked away. Airesiwe looked at her arm, and already it was swollen to twice its size. There was no hope in moving it either. She peeked over her shoulder and noticed that the Fellowship had lined up in front of Galadriel and a few other elves. One of them, was Alkhuan. Galadriel had told her that he was her brother. Airesiwe walked up to the line, standing besides Frodo, and stared at Alkhuan. Alkhuan smiled back, and did a short wave. 'I wonder if I'll ever see him again' Airesiwe wondered to herself as Galadriel spoke.  
  
"Ten there were that set out from Rivendell, though now, only nine remain. But do not lose hope now. Keep your spirits strong, and hope will rise to the highest. Do not be troubled by the loss of a friend, for the future holds dearer things." Galadriel took something from one of the woodlen elves, then gave it to the Fellowship. "I give you these cloaks. They will be of much help when you need it most." Each cloak was fastened around each member of the Fellowship along with a green leaf brooch.  
  
"Are these cloaks magic?" Pippin said with wonder. Galadriel turned and smiled. "You will learn in time young Peregrin." She gave Sam an elven rope, made out of hithlain as well. Airesiwe saw her give something to Frodo out of the corner of her eye, but paid no mind to it. When the gifts were given, the fellowship made their way towards the canoes, ready to continue their adventure towards Mordor. In one boat, Merry, Pippin, and Boromir were together. Another canoe carried Aragorn, Legolas, and Gimli. Last, were Airesiwe, Frodo, and Sam. When they paddled off, they waved farewell to the elves and the beautiful land of Lothlorien. On the shores, Celeborn and Galadriel waved back. Airesiwe looked at Galadriel one last time with large eyes, then turned away. Soon the world became a wet blur and she tried desperately not to cry.  
  
*Through life or death, we will meet again* Galadriel reminded Airesiwe. But by the time Airesiwe looked back towards the shore, they had vanished.  
  
"Do you suppose we'll ever return," Sam said with hope in his eyes. Airesiwe turned to look at him, and smiled.  
  
"Someday," Airesiwe said while paddling the canoe once more, "Our paths will lead us home." 


	15. Chapter 15

The days passed slowly as the Fellowship canoed along the Great River. Airesiwe's arms ached with pain, and her left arm wasn't doing any better. In fact, it was becoming worse. But she refused to tell anyone about it, in fear that she forever be know as 'a burden' to the Fellowship.  
  
Airesiwe and Sam were the only people who paddled their canoe. Sam would usually take the day shift, and Airesiwe, the night shift. At times, her left arm would become so numb that she would usually drop the paddle in the river. Luckily, the paddle was made up of a light material, and would float. But every time she dropped it, she would have to paddle back using her hands, which caused many delays.  
  
One night, Airesiwe was paddling when she noticed that Frodo was awake. She slowed her pace and decided to ease the silence of the dark night by talking to him. But no matter what, she couldn't think of anything useful to say. Finally, Frodo broke the silence.  
  
"Airesiwe," Frodo whispered. His face was pale and his eyes were as dark as the river itself. He made a small gesture towards the water behind them. Airesiwe stopped paddling and crawled to the back of the boat, hoping not to wake Sam. Once she got to the back of the boat, she peered out onto the black river and squinted her eyes. She couldn't see anything in the dark night.  
  
"What do you see?" Airesiwe whispered back, still trying to scan the water.  
  
Frodo shivered. "I'm not sure, I, I guess it must have just been a vision." Frodo cowered down to the bottom of the small boat, as if hiding from the very air he breathed. Airesiwe wished that she could comfort him, but instead looked one last time at the surface of the water. At last, she saw it. A dark shadow was paddling not far behind them, and a small hissing noise could be heard.  
  
**************************************************************************** *****  
  
After another day of paddling, the Fellowship reached the shores in front of what looked like a large waterfall. Behind the rocky shore, was a large, thick forest. They unpacked many of their supplies and already started to make a small fire. Airesiwe decided that this would be a good time to explore the land, but knew that Legolas, Aragorn, and Boromir would never allow it. So she waited for awhile, until all of their backs were turned and quickly fled into the forest.  
  
Finally, Airesiwe was alone. She walked slowly through the woods, (which surprisingly let in a lot of sunlight) thinking about what to do next. Leaving Lothlorien was probably something that she would regret forever, but knowing that she was to keep her promise, she had no choice. She kicked some leaves that laid on the ground and tried to remember Rivendell, and if Arwen was worried. 'I'll probably never hear the end of it' Airesiwe thought to herself.  
  
She continued walking in deep thought, when suddenly a black shape appeared. Carefully, she drew her bow and arrow, and wished that she had her sword. The shape came closer, until finally it was clear.  
  
"Frodo?!" Airesiwe shouted, louder than she intended. "How did you find me?"  
  
"I'm, I'm sorry I didn't mean to startle you." Frodo stuttered while turning bright red. "It's just that, well, it's Boromir. He tried to take the ring from me." Frodo turned around and looked in the direction he came. "He's gone mad. I, I don't know what to do! If this ring can possess someone as powerful as Boromir, then just think what it'll do to me!" Frodo was yelling at this point, so Airesiwe put a comforting hand on his shoulder.  
  
"You've gotten the ring this far Frodo." Airesiwe wasn't quite sure how to continue, so she dropped the subject. "Boromir isn't as powerful as you think. If I didn't know any better, I'd say he was a wimp. Besides, he tried to take the ring at the council. He's greedy, and his possession of the ring started before this quest even began."  
  
Frodo turned around and smiled at Airesiwe. "You're right," he managed to say through his big smile. All of a sudden, a loud noise erupted from the heart of the forest. Not knowing what it was, Airesiwe aimed her bow in that direction. A swarm of what looked like oversized orcs were running towards them armed and ready to attack.  
  
"Run!" Airesiwe yelled at Frodo. Frodo just stood there in shock and fear. "RUN!" Airesiwe shouted louder giving Frodo a light push. Frodo fell to the ground and Airesiwe turned around, only to be faced by one of the large creatures. Airesiwe took one of her bows and stabbed the giant creature. It let out a low moan, then fell quickly to the ground almost knocking Airesiwe over as well. She didn't have much time to recollect her arrow, for another orc had come up and attempted to stab her. Before she knew it, she was surrounded by large orcs, with only a couple arrows to use. She looked in the place where she pushed Frodo, and saw that he was gone.  
  
Panic arose is Airesiwe's mind as she tried to stay calm. She took out her bow and an arrow she had and aimed it at a random orc. She fired it, hitting it, and while it screamed in pain she shot another. Pretty soon the circle that had surrounded her broke and she was able to run away. As she ran, she bumped into Aragorn.  
  
"Airesiwe! Thank heavens we found you!" Aragorn said. But when he saw the swarm of orcs coming towards them, he quickly started to run pulling Airesiwe along with him.  
  
"Where is Frodo?" he shouted while running. Airesiwe whimpered to herself and wished that Aragorn would let go of her bad arm. Instead, she gave a short reply.  
  
"I'm not sure. I figured he was with you and the others." She dodged an arrow that flew past her and started running faster. Aragorn did the same.  
  
"I want you to find him. Leave these orcs to me." With that, he stopped in his tracks and started fighting the orcs. Airesiwe kept running, but not to find Frodo. Instead she made her way towards the shore in hope that it wasn't too late to return home.  
  
**************************************************************************** **  
  
She arrived quickly at the shore of the Great River, not long after winning a short battle with a couple more orcs. She looked at the boats and saw that one was missing. Looking towards the other side of the river, she caught a glimpse of Frodo paddling towards the other shore. He was alone, and already halfway across the river. Not wanting to startle him, Airesiwe jumped into the warm water, and swam underwater towards the canoe. The river water was very dirty and murky, and it was almost impossible to see within a foot ahead of herself. A couple times, Airesiwe silently came to the surface for air, but finally was right under the boat. She could hear Frodo screaming, and another shadow could be seen in the water, though she could not clearly make it out. She swam towards the surface, almost about to burst, and silently floated there.  
  
There seemed to be much commotion in the water on the other side of the canoe. She bobbed in the water for some time, not sure of what to do when the splashing stopped. With that, she put her fingers on the brim of the canoe and attempted to pull herself up into the boat.  
  
Coughing out water, Airesiwe lifted herself up from the river water and almost tipped the boat over. Because of the murky water, she couldn't see very much and her eyes stung. Just then, an object slammed into her left arm and she cried out in pain. Collapsing, she fell back into the water and made no effort to get back up. She opened her eyes when she was already halfway down and desperately tried to push herself up. Finally, she broke the surface of the water, eyes stinging and still coughing up dirty river water. She opened her swollen eyes and saw Frodo and Sam looking down on her with pale faces. She managed to smile weakly as Frodo and Sam helped her up into the boat.  
  
"Airesiwe! Oh, I'm terribly sorry," Sam said quickly. "I thought you were Gollum, or some other unearthly creature. I didn't mean to hit you like that!" Sam was on the brink of tears as Airesiwe hugged him.  
  
"It's ok Sam," she said quietly, "Everything's ok now, I'm not hurt that badly." She looked over at Frodo who was trying hard not to laugh. Just his expression made Airesiwe laugh as well. Before long, both of them were laughing hysterically almost tipping the boat over. Sam looked down at them, and started laughing as well. After much debating, they decided to stop laughing and continue on towards Mordor.  
  
When they reached the shore of the other side of the Great River, they dropped their canoes and other non-useful supplies that they carried and trudged up a tall, nearby hill. At the top, they could just barely see beyond the mountains that separated Middle Earth from Mordor. A large volcano erupted, making the trees around them sway.  
  
"It's hard to believe that we will actually be going in there," Frodo said to himself.  
  
"Yes, it is hard to believe," Airesiwe said standing nearby Sam. "But not even the lava of that mountain can stop us from doing so." She looked at the two rosy cheeked hobbits and smiled. They smiled back, and soon were laughing again. When Frodo caught his breathe, he walked up to Airesiwe.  
  
"I'm glad you're with us, Airesiwe," he said shyly. "Without you, I wouldn't have made it this far."  
  
Airesiwe felt like laughing, but then soon realized that he was serious. "Me?" Airesiwe questioned Frodo. She turned around and looked at Sam, who was still looking in awe at the mountain of fire. "It wasn't because of me that you made it this far Frodo. It is Sam who has stuck with you since the beginning." Airesiwe turned to look back at Frodo who was staring at Sam. He walked up to him and spoke a few words to him, then they hugged each other. 'Those hobbits have the tightest friendship I have ever seen' Airesiwe thought again with tears dripping down from her eyes. The hobbits walked back down the hill, but Airesiwe stayed on top. She looked behind her and saw Middle Earth below her feet, and wondered if the Fellowship would find a safer path to take. She looked upon Lothlorien, then upon the Misty Mountain. She strained her eyes, but couldn't see Rivendell from where she stood. As soon as she turned around and followed the hobbits, she knew that now, she couldn't turn back no matter what dangers were ahead. She would do anything now to help Frodo destroy the ring, even if it killed her.  
  
*~*The End*~* 


End file.
